Wide-Format & Signage November 2019 by WhatTheyThink

NOVEMBER 2019

52 RMX Network - United They Grow

That’s a Wrap Wrapping “Kings” Turn Vehicle Graphics Into Art

54 Latest Sign Code Court Decision May Have Serious Implications for Billboard and Sign Industry 58 Digital Technologies Offer the Textiles Industry a Sustainable Future

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EDITOR Jessica Taylor jessica@whattheythink.com MANAGING EDITOR Richard Romano richard@whattheythink.com SENIOR EDITOR Cary Sherburne cary@whattheythink.com BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Paul Zimmerman paul@whattheythink.com 973-727-1376 PRESIDENT Eric Vessels eric@whattheythink.com 740-417-3333 COO Adam Dewitz adam@whattheythink.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Tom Crouser Jennifer Matt Christine Erna Mary Schilling Dave Fellman Heidi Tolliver-Walker John Giles Deb Thompson Elizabeth Gooding David Zwang CREATIVE SERVICES Bobbi Burow, CreativityTank LLC bobbi.burow@gmail.com SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE For change of address or subscription information email: help@whattheythink.com Published by WTT Media, Inc. 2038 Ford Parkway #218, Saint Paul, MN 55116 ARTICLE REPRINTS Please contact your account executive PrintingNews.com PrintingNews.com—the web portal representing content from Printing News, Wide-Format & Signage—is devoted to delivering you timely news and multimedia content on a daily basis. WhatTheyThink (ISSN 2642-3189) (USPS 500850) Volume 43, Number 2 is published ten times per year in January/February, March, April, May, June/July, August, September, October, November, and December by WTT Media, Inc., at 2038 Ford Parkway #218, Saint Paul, MN 55116. Periodicals postage paid at Saint Paul, MN and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to WhatTheyThink, 2038 Ford Parkway #218, Saint Paul, MN 55116. Subscriptions: Individual subscriptions are available without charge in the U.S. to qualified subscribers. Publisher reserves the right to reject non-qualified subscriptions. Annual subscription prices in the U.S.A $95; Canada $125 USD; all other countries $150 USD. Printed in the USA. Copyright © 2019 WTT Media, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recordings or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission. WTT Media Inc. does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any person or company for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions in the material herein, regardless of causation. The views and opinions in the articles herein are not those of the publishers, unless indicated. The publishers do not warrant, either expressly or by implication, the factual accuracy of the articles herein, or of any views or opinions offered by the authors of said articles.

The End of PRINT at McCormick Place

n October 2019, the trade show called PRINT 19 took place in Chicago. It was sad for me, because this event had been a part of my life in the printing industry for 51 years. I was there at PRINT in 1968 when it all began and I was there in 2019 when it ended its run at McCormick Place. PRINT 68 was the first printing trade show of the modern era. McCormick Place had burned down several months before the show, and they had moved the event to the Amphitheater, also known as the Cow Palace. There were multiple printing trade shows in the 1970s. There were a few nationals and about 10 regionals. PRINT became an every four- to five-year event and GRAPH EXPO ran in the intervening years. They tried moving the show to other cities, but it always came back to Chicago, where it stayed. Chicago was perfect. A good portion of the printing industry could drive to it. By the 1990s, the show occupied most of the expanded McCormick Place. At PRINT 68, I was 27 years old and I saw the magnitude of the printing industry. Goss had a web press running. Phototypesetting machines abounded. In other years, I would see automation and computer-to-plate and digital printing. I fell in love with an industry. They started doing seminars at the shows in the early 1980s and I would present sessions, eventually running the seminar program for 20 years. I have spoken at almost every Chicago show. There were many trade shows for the printing industry. The Gutenberg Festival was a California event. Graphics of the Americas ran in Miami Beach and attracted a large Latin America audience. There were regional shows in New England and Texas. There was the PICA show in North Carolina. There was Dick Vinocur’s conference and exhibit. There was even my show, Type-X, which

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focused on typesetting. XPLOR was also gigantic and, after a while, so was the Seybold Conference, both east and west versions. In 2000, I was the keynote at XPLOR in Dallas. There were 4,000 people in the audience. Offset printing helped to grow the industry, as it was so much easier than letterpress, and we saw the growth of every level of the industry. The quick printer was born because of it. The middle market gravitated to 4-up and 8-up sheetfed presses. The giant printers were web-oriented. There was always something new to see and consider. It all changed after 2001. We were trapped in Chicago because of 9/11. All shows lost attendance after that, but PRINT prevailed because so many people could drive to it. The screen printing event morphed into inkjet. SGIA became the go-to event for new digital technology. As inkjet printing machines got larger, so did the SGIA show. I remember going to a user group meeting at one show where they talked about flatbed inkjet. I realized that this was the future of the printing industry. Now SGIA has morphed into the biggest printing show. It is called PRINTING United and we will trek to Dallas, or Atlanta, or Orlando or wherever. Giant shows do not always remain giant shows. Markets change and the way suppliers market changes. I tell students that everything I teach them will be obsolete by the time of their first child. As you can see, it happens to shows as well. They come and go. Remember, PRINT was big once. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091458 ■

Frank Romano RIT Professor Emeritus fxrppr@rit.edu

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CONTENTS

NOVEMBER 2019

PRINTING NEWS 8 Labelexpo 2019: Hybrid or...? David Zwang 14 Labels and Packaging Trends for 2019 and Beyond David Zwang 16 Labels! Labels! Labels! And, Packaging! Pat McGrew

COVER STORY

20 Aqueous, Oil, Hotmelt and UV-cured, Oh My! Mark Bale

58 Ending the Waste Debbie McKeegan

26 There’s a Real Person Behind Those “Love Mail” Numbers Heidi Tolliver-Walker

30 Gain a 20% Increase in Sales Productivity through Pre-call Planning Lisa Magnuson 32 Teamwork – NASCAR Shows How Debra Thompson 36 Marketing Lessons from Top Retailers vs. Fastest Growing Ones Heidi Tolliver-Walker 38 Prioritizing Online Tools for Existing Customers Jennifer Matt WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE 40 That’s a Wrap Richard Romano

56 6

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54 The Court is in Session Richard Romano 56 Acabada Launches CBD Infused Activewear Cary Sherburne

28 Your Postal Strategy Christine Erna

52 The RMX Network: United They Grow Richard Romano

18 Shift Happens: Understanding Aqueous Ink Chemistry Mary Schilling

24 BOBST Ups the Stakes with Next-Generation Hybrid Press and More Cary Sherburne

46 Know the Signs: A Non-Print Signage Primer Richard Romano

60 SGIA: Navigating the Printing Evolution Ford Bowers

Departments 4 Editorial 32

Research & White Paper

34 Watch List: Video 51 Product News 64

Classifieds/Supplier Directory

In the Know- Events Think Smart Factory, Kyoto Japan ThinkSmartFactory.com Nov. 11-13, 2019

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LABELS & PACKAGING

Labelexpo 2019: Hybrid or...? Labelexpo 2019, marking the eventâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 40th anniversary, launched in Brussels in September to a huge group of more than 600 exhibitors and a very large global audience of attendees. Article by David Zwang

y the end of my final day at the biennial Labelexpo in Brussels last September, I have had a chance to walk (run) the floor of much of the event. Not all of it, since it is 11 (yes, 11!) halls, and I have short legs. But during the time I spent running and sitting on the Metro, I have had a chance to reflect on some of the bigger trends I saw. Generally, most of what was shown was evolutionary not necessarily revolutionary, although we may see some of the latter at drupa next year.

40 Years Strong As expected, Labelexpo Europe was an exciting event. This 40th anniversary edition of the event has more than 600 exhibitors from all over the globe. While the name suggests that it is all about labels and label production, there is an increasing move toward flexible packaging as well. Considering many similarities in the equipment, substrates, etc., it does make sense. Flexography is still the predominant production print method for both label and flexible packaging production. However, as we saw during the last Labelexpo, held in Brussels two years ago, there is a definite increase in the

Omet XJet with Durst Imaging.

use of production inkjet both as a standalone solution and as a hybrid add-on to flexo platforms. The inkjet solutions, both standalone and

hybrid, are increasing in speed and we are now seeing up to 100 meters per minute (m/min), although inline die cutting and embellishing do have

David Zwang David Zwang specializes in process analysis, and strategic development of firms involved publishing and packaging across the globe. Contact him at david@zwang.com

Bobst Master DM5 with flexo and Mouvent Imaging.

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LABELS & PACKAGING in many of the product discussions as well. In Europe, regulations are focusing on sustainability, but globally there is also a significant consumer push toward sustainability. Inks, coatings, substrates, drying, energy demands, etc., are now a big part of the product development and marketing. Avery Dennison showed a line of products that went well beyond being recyclable. They showed substrates that were made from 50% grape waste combined with 40% recycled waste and 10% assorted other post-consumer waste. Security and traceability, also driven by regulation and desire for anti-counterfeiting, were also a big focus in everything from print embellishments to tamperevident adhesives. Konica Minolta AccurioLabel with and without the GM flexo unit at the feed for white, precoat, or other.

an impact on speed. In some of those cases, we are seeing up to 80 m/min, which is still an impressive speed for a full featured production inkjet solution. Inline laser die cutting is currently hitting a comfortable 100 m/min, so we can expect that the overall speed of most of these full-featured label machines will be reaching 100 m/min by drupa. There is also a significant increase in embellishment technologies all around. Not just as standalone processes, but very much a part of a production print line. All of these added inline features are now desired since many converters are finding that the offline solutions are making the on-demand deliveries a challenge. I have written often about the move to hybrid—and, more importantly, bespoke—production solutions, and, as we’ll see later in this article, a large percentage of the new solutions on the floor exhibited those characteristics. Much of this is supported by an increase in collaboration amongst equipment

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vendors. Companies that offer digital printing and embellishment solutions for new and existing flexo presses were in abundance. Memjet, whom I have previously covered, had 17 OEM partners showing products here. Again, I expect to see much more of that when we hit drupa 2020, and well beyond just label production. Sustainability is front and center

Another big area of development being shown is connectability. Solutions that support virtual reality (VR) are in abundance. RFID innovations are also being shown. In one case, using labels and other packaging with RFID printing, a store clerk can quickly scan an entire room of product and get accurate inventory counts. Using the

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LABELS & PACKAGING same RFID enhanced packaging, a consumer could get in-depth product information using their cell phone.

Hybrid As I mentioned earlier, there were a lot of hybrid presses on the show floor. Flexo presses with inkjet or toner digital integrated imaging; digital presses with flexo imaging in order to get the great opaque white needed for many labels and flexible packaging or precoating for plastics, etc.; a variety of presses with inline enhancement capabilities, etc. Yes, there were also plain vanilla digital and/or flexo presses on display as well, but there are some undeniable trends evolving. Below you can (Above) ABG embellishment system. (Left) GM developed embellishment for Konica Minolta.

see a few examples of the types of press solutions on display, and many of them do seem to have a similar appearance although, depending on the specific configuration, a different end use. If they are hybrid, there is usually an imaging unit of varying size in the middle of the flexo transport. If it is just digital, there is usually an imaging unit with a feed and rewind on either end. In some 10

cases, this hybrid integration was part of the initial design and, in some cases, it was added after the fact. There were many standalone embellishment machines as well as many with the addition of inline embellishment functionality. In these configurations, the embellishment is usually placed after the printing engine, although there are some configurations where the printing

overprints the embellishment, so it is in reverse order. In listening to many of the press manufacturers and looking at label and flexible industry converter trends, there seems to be a desire to run more operations inline to minimize handling and waste, and to keep turn times low for the increasingly short-run jobs. Interestingly, the packaging market is having many of the same discussions that commercial print had been having through for years: inline, nearline, offline, and when does it make sense to create a complete purpose-built production line? Digitization of controls has allowed many of these printing, finishing, and embellishment technologies to shrink in size and adapt to the new integration requirements. In the case of labels and packaging, the large amount of finishing variants and packaging requirements dwarf those in commercial printing, so it may make sense to develop more purpose-built systems and components.

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LABELS & PACKAGING Bespoke: The Real End Game? While there are a lot of hybrid solutions out there, and an increasing number of components to support the variety of packaging requirements, perhaps the whole hybrid evolution today is really just a part of the industry’s digital transformation and transition to the real end game—purpose-built or bespoke solutions. As we move to more digital print solutions to satisfy the requirements of shorter “on-demand” runs, a number of things happen. First of all, the digital toner and inkjet solutions are slower than the conventional flexo solutions, which means that the total available production capacity of the press is less. But that is not necessarily a bad thing, because it allows you to create focused and optimized production processes based on specific requirements instead of trying to fit work with different requirements into the same production processes. That could provide more cost effective and timely solutions with fewer setups and less handling. Interestingly, we are already starting to see this concept develop in the way that HP has been approaching the label and packaging market. Their Indigo print engines come in a variety of sizes and speeds, but are all basically the same imaging engines. In order to offer the market the added value of digital print, they have been working with many other solution partners to develop purposebuilt solutions. These include a number of label types, shrink tubes, a variety of flexible packaging, and more recently to pouch production. Memjet had 17 OEMs that had integrated their printheads into a variety of different machines to support a variety of applications. I wouldn’t be surprised if that number isn’t close to triple that by drupa. Ultimately, if we are going to achieve 12

Canon Océ with embellishment and die-cutting.

SEI Label Master Laser Cutter.

the dream/reality of “Industry 4.0,” this type of production approach will have to become more mainstream. Is this the solution for all print and packaging manufacturing? Maybe not. Obviously, if your business is not producing short runs, or if you have a mix of short and long runs, you probably need an analog (flexo) solution, or both, depending on business requirements.

Workflows to Control It All Many of the workflow vendors like Hybrid Software, Esko, and Enfocus are positioning themselves to address this type of purpose-built manufacturing, with agnostic solutions to support the array of disparate equipment components required to make this all happen. The MIS, ERP, and storefront software companies are also a very crucial part of this

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LABELS & PACKAGING

Two different HP purpose-built systems with similar imaging engines: labels and pouches.

move and have been working on creating solutions to support this type of production. For example, XMPie showed software that can facilitate online ordering, proofing, and production of packaging with

3D proofing. Esko was showing their award-winning Studio Store Visualizer, which provides consumer product companies and retail stores a way to create a realistic planogram to see how a group of products would look on a shelf in a store environment. As the demand for quicker times to market with smaller, more targeted product becomes a reality, creating the infrastructure and tools to support this will increasingly become more important. I am sure that much of what was shown here will make its way in both product and/or concept at drupa 2020 next year targeting many different types of print production requirements. Ultimately it can and will support the vision of Industry 4.0. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091737 â&#x2013;

For more information, visit PrintingNews.com/21093137

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LABELS & PACKAGING

Labels and Packaging and Beyond

for

From personalization to sustainability, check out these future trends. Article by David Zwang

he trends in labels and packaging have become pretty well defined in 2019 and will undoubtedly remain a significant focus going forward. The four primary trends are: quality, short and on-demand production runs, personalization and a focus on sustainability. The messaging from consumer product companies, equipment and consumables manufacturers and most importantly consumers, will drive each of these to the forefront of discussion.

Quality Is a Given Printing in the “pre-digital” era was thought of as a craft. In fact, if you consider all of the variables that needed to be controlled in the process, it was a “highly skilled” craft. For example, during that period of time in offset printing you had to balance ink color and formulation, water, plates, separations, screening, machine impression, environmental conditions, etc. When all these things came together in the “ideal” configuration, you were able to get some pretty amazing reproductions. It was and still is all about controlling all of those inherent variables. The impact of digital technologies on many of these variables, like the introduction of Computer to Film (CTF) and subsequently Computer to Plate (CTP) for offset and gravure printing provided better ways to control the process. However, much of what we experienced historically in label and packaging print seemed to miss out on much of the quality experiences of offset printing, since the run sizes and cost impact dictated the use of other types of print technologies. The highest print quality of the time was undoubtedly rotogravure, as evidenced by its use in the production of National Geographic, often thought of as the pinnacle of printing quality. Although with a significant preparation cost for short to medium-sized production runs, it made its use in labels and packaging somewhat limited to high-volume and reoccurring print runs. 14

About 10 years ago, things started to change, and we can now see the higher quality benefits in much of the label and packaging print we see in the marketplace. Some of those changes can be attributed to the digitization of flexo plating, which initially started in the mid 1990s and has significantly improved over the last decade. The other change is the availability of digital printing solutions, both liquid and dry toner and more recently production inkjet.

Short and On-Demand Runs This is primarily due to the potential opportunities driven by evolving market demands. According to the recent “Emerging Technologies for Packaging Innovation” study, published by the Graphic Communication Institute at Cal Poly, there is good reason for this. According to the report, “CPGs (Consumer Product Groups) show no sign of letting up on SKU proliferation, thus exacerbating the impact of short runs on the supply chain. A quest for more product variations, sizes, tailored messaging and promotions were all indicated as key drivers behind SKU proliferation.…CPGs also show a solid understanding of the impact of SKU proliferation on converters, the technology they use and seek-out those that can offer a competitive edge with new technology.” In fact “seventy-one percent of CPGs responded they actively seek converters/printers with emerging printing capabilities, such as digital printing.” Label and packaging converters are finding this increase in mass customization forces them to rethink and retool their operations. While the more obvious solution to address these new requirements might be digital printing, the digitization of flexo printing equipment has made this high-quality and lower cost alternative to digital printing a fierce competitor.

Personalization We have all seen the studies and even experienced firsthand the value of personalization in direct mail and other

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LABELS & PACKAGING forms of communication. But what about the value of personalization in products and packaging? There are a lot of projections into what the market value “could be.” For example, according to a 2017 study, the expected value of the personalized gift market will increase 55% from 2016 to 2021 to an estimated value of $31 billion. Another study from Deloitte estimates that 50% of millennial and Gen Z consumers express a desire for personalized products, and 70% of shoppers are willing to pay a premium of 10%+ for personalized products. In the world of consumer packaging, the leading brands and CPGs are just scratching the surface of what is possible. Products can be localized to appeal to a specific language and/or target group, or they can be individually customized with family photos and other personal information. Variable data printing (VDP) has been around for decades, and in fact it is the core technology for transactional print. The first generation of VDP tools were standalone software products accessed on a workstation or web portal to create variable graphic files for printing. The second generation of VDP solutions moved the variable data integration from prepress to the DFE. In the case of most transactional and even direct mail VDP, the variable data is applied against a template and fed as a data stream to the digital press’s DFE to apply the variable data into the print stream. PDF 2.0 is the first new version of PDF since 2008 and was designed to address many of the new requirements dictated by wider adoption of PDF digital file distribution as well as specific use requirements like those of packaging production. In fact, PDF 2.0 and nextgeneration software that can take advantage of its features are now beginning to address many of those needs. Since PDF is an object-based file format, with the right tools, each object in a PDF file can be edited independently without the need for the original native document creation software. Additionally, PDF 2.0 supports the ability to assign metadata to PDF objects.

inks that have indirect or even direct food contact to reduce the need of intermediate barriers or packaging. Finally, the paper and packaging media manufacturers are focusing on creating recyclable packaging produced from recycled components. Technology-driven market changes will continue to proliferate. However, these trends we are seeing in labels and packaging will undoubtedly support most of those changes, product growth and opportunity going forward.

More to Come… I would like to address your interests and concerns in future articles as it relates to the manufacturing of Print, Packaging and Labels, and how, if at all, it drives future workflows including “Industry 4.0.” If you have any interesting examples of hybrid and bespoke manufacturing, I am very anxious to hear about them. Please feel free to contact me at david@zwang. com with any questions, suggestions or examples of interesting applications. Find article here PrintingNews. com/21092257 ■

Sustainability The impact of packaging and packaging production is increasingly playing a significant role in the decisions made by consumers and, as a result, consumer product companies. In Europe, sustainability is now regulated. Around the rest of the globe it is moving from a faint discussion by a few to a resounding cry from the masses. As a result, we are beginning to see the overall products and product messaging changing. Newer presses and production equipment of all types, including offset, flexo, toner, inkjet and finishing are all taking energy reduction into account. The ink manufacturers are all developing

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LABELS & PACKAGING

Labels! Labels! Labels! And, Packaging! Story by Pat McGrew

here is no doubt that the world of labels is as varied as the industries they serve. The same is true of packaging. The world of labels spans an ecosystem from simple to elaborate, decorative to regulated, and every stop in between. Packaging can be

Pat McGrew Pat McGrew has more than three decades as an evangelist for technology in communication. She is an author and regular writer in the industry trade press.

When we think of Labels and packaging we sometimes forget that this encompasses more that boxes and package labels. Canon showed innovative use of their printing technology with floor labeling that was used to line the aisles. Their two aisles were among many, each printed by different vendors, that showed pathways through the show. IT was durable and remarkable because it made people look at the floor.

as simple as the brown corrugated boxes we all know to the most elaborate origami-like cartons used for luxury goods, product announcements, and other situations where design rules. The exciting innovations in labels and packaging mean that today there are solutions at just about every price point and for every level of sophistication. At recent shows in Australia, Denmark and Belgium, labels and packaging innovations were on display from a variety of vendors who showed both analog and digital solutions and workflows that support them. Every printing company should be paying attention to this evolving market because it is expanding. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21092347 ■ The Epson ColorWorks C7500 attracted attention at LabelExpo Europe because the team at Epson were their own beta site. Their challenge was to create a durable industrial label printer that spoke the right print languages for easy integration. They practiced in their own warehouses until they got it right. It can be paired with a turret rewinder for non-stop printing, and in light-out sites, robotic arms can be trained to pick and place the label.

From the collection of Janne Høgshøj, Direktør Danish Connection, comes two exciting packaging pieces on display at the Danish Sign Print & Pack show. One shows a multi-dimensional product announcement for an IT platform. It uses a bit of origami folding enfolding a box representing the platform, with each fold used to highlight product features. The Pandora package conveys the high value nature of the Pandora brand. The important thing about these two packaging samples is that they can be accomplished on most A3+ presses, digital or analog. 16

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LABELS & PACKAGING

Software was everywhere at all the shows this season. At LabelExpo Europe the Hybrid Software theatre was constantly packed with eager listeners. At most shows this year software has attracted more attention than usual as companies strive for operational efficiency. The team at Rogler (2164)took that to a new level with a module for their Print MIS that can manage your robot workforce. If you have invested in the type of Automated Guided Vehicles (AGV) that move paper from your warehouse to the loading end of the press or pick up pallets of finished goods, Roglerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s module knows where the AGV is and what it is doing!

On display in the Labelman stand was a storyboard for their RFIDenabled labels. They were one of a few companies bringing RFID solutions to the show.

Meet Martin Bailey of Global Graphics at their booth at LabelExpo Europe and a book from the Labels & Labeling team authored by Michael Fairley to which martin contributed. Digital label and Package Printing is sure to become another best seller for the Labels & labeling team, and Martinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s insights are a value contribution. He is the power behind the PrintFlat technology from Global Graphics. Licensed to equipment manufacturers who prefer not to be named, PrintFlat virtually eliminates anomalies that sometimes arise in inkjet printing. If you are printing label and packaging with inkjet, this is a technology worth investigating.

It is hard to design a demonstration that shows the power of digital label printing, but the team at HP added vibrance to their LabelExpo Europe by hiring a sketch artist to capture visitors to the booth and then printing the sketches onto their template label for Fiesta Tequila on the HP Indigo and HP GEM to add enhancement! This live demo showed the power of personalization in a very personal way.

LabelExpo Europe saw the demonstration of the new Memjet DuraFlex print heads integrated into 7 different print solutions in the stands. This third generation solution promises more color vibrance, more flexibility and easier integration!

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DIGITAL & INKJET

Shift Happens: Understanding Aqueous Ink Chemistry Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot to consider when choosing inks. Article by Mary Schilling

nkjet ink chemistry can vary by device and process. Many inks have been developed to be compatible with specific substrate conditions. Knowing the type of ink and understanding its chemistry is

Mary Schilling Mary Schilling is co-owner of www.InkjetInsight.com and the owner of www. SchillingInkjetConsulting. com. She consults with paper mills, fluid and inkjet machinery suppliers and end users. She writes technical inkjet industry and training articles.

just as important as understanding how it reacts to your surface conditions. Aqueous, ultra violet (UV) and oil are the three most common chemistries today. For the high speed and industrial print markets, aqueous and UV are most commonly used.

Aqueous Ink and Colorant Differences Aqueous is just what its name entails; aqua or water. Water is the highest percentage within the chemistry of this type of ink and is used as a carrier to deliver the inks colorant within a drop. Used in high

speed inkjet, wide format, as well as textile printing, aqueous ink gets its color from either dye or pigment. Dye colorants are organic and have brighter undertones and higher transparency than pigment. Dye requires substrates with an ink receptive coating to allow the colorant to quickly bind while the water content evaporates. Dye is a soluble colorant which works well on specialized inkjet coated papers such as the ones used on desktop and wide format printers but does not deliver the same high-end results on high speed inkjet devices. On porous (uncoated) media, since the ink and the dyes are soluble,

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DIGITAL & INKJET 1. Proper disbursement 2. Surface energy 3. Dwell time 4. Print head 5. Pigment interactions It is a finely tuned process which takes more time and cost to manufacture than dye.

Shift Happens with Aqueous Inks

Injet Coated

Primed

Uncoated

dye ink will absorb quickly into the surface leaving printed graphics washed out. This is less of an issue when used with inkjet coated or primed media. To address the varied image performance and light and water fastness with dye, OEMs began moving to aqueous pigment to increase the performance characteristics. Pigment colorant, unlike dye, is insoluble. The

the evaporation of the carrier (water). In some cases, adding NIT to conventional drying technology can also help when printing high coverage on low porous materials, reducing paper deformity while helping the ink dry faster at production speeds. Cases of high humidity have been known to create a misting or even rain within the inkjet device. Drying is a crucial of part of working with aqueous

colored pigment particles separate quickly from the aqueous carrier. However, like dye, pigment colorants respond best to absorbent coatings on nonporous media and primed porous media. These surfaces trap the pigment flake on, or closer to, the surface creating higher chroma (remember chroma represents a colorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s purity).

inkjet because water must be properly extracted from the ink at high speeds.

Drying Aqueous inks require heat or convection air flow to assist with

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Dye vs. Pigment Costs Dye inks are less expensive to manufacture than pigment inks. Remember those pigment particles mentioned earlier? Stabilizing a pigment formula for inkjet ink is no easy task. Developing inorganic pigment ink depends on five variables in order to achieve color intensity, gloss and opacity.

Both types of aqueous inks are highly coating/primer and substrate dependent. If a substrate has coating applied at the manufacturer or primers applied inline of the process, the chemistry, volume and drying aspects of aqueous inks will vary. For all substrates; coated, porous or non-porous, each ink color can react differently, creating varied absorption, dot spread, ink limiting and drying requirements. You may also notice that aqueous pigment inks used on different devices produce different color values or gamut size on the same media. Maybe one device prints deeper reds than another. The color gamut, which can be reproduced with a pigment ink, is dependent on the size of the pigment particles themselves. The size directly affects achievable color and the jetting accuracy of a print head. Pigment particle sizes are determined on the target viscosity of the ink chemistry itself. Jet speeds and drop size greatly affect particle sizes used. When considering aqueous inks, keep in mind that there are many factors which can affect color regardless of pigment or dye. The key is separating the colorant quickly from the water, keeping printed colors pure and smooth without any mottle or coalescence by choosing the right surface to print on. Find article here PrintingNews. com/21091658 â&#x2013;

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DIGITAL & INKJET

Aqueous, Oil, Hotmelt and UV-cured, Oh My! Inkjet chemistry matters. Article by Mark Bale

rom office printers to some of the biggest and fastest production inkjet machines, there are some common properties derived from different ingredient choices. There are four main competing ink types: aqueous, oil, Mark Bale Dr Mark Bale is a PhD Physicist and published author of academic papers, patents, books and online content. He founded DoDxAct Ltd, an inkjet technology consultancy.

hotmelt and UV-cured; with each marketed as the one that gives the best color, speed or substrate tolerance. Of these, water is by far the most common carrier used globally for inkjet inks.

Color Comes First Regardless of ink type, one of the most important choices to be made is the colorant. Whether you have pigment or dye can make a big difference. Simply put, dyes dissolves in the ink

base, whilst pigments stay as solid particles. As a result, dye is cheaper to make and incorporate into the ink and is therefore often found in lower-priced offerings. Pigment offers generally superior water resistance and UV fade resistance and so it is by far the most dominant choice these days. From a sustainability perspective, it is easier to recycle. On the negative side, pigmented

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DIGITAL & INKJET

A lot of the key performance differences are based on how the carrier solvent absorb and/or evaporate as shown here.

inks generally cost more per pound because those solid particles need to be dispersed somehow to keep them stable in the mixture, usually by milling. In fact, pigment dispersion technology is the key to a good inkjet ink, since it influences the

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color capability as well as the overall performance in the system. The manufacturing process for each ink type will be optimized differently because of the other ingredients present and the effect they have on the pigment.

The other main difference between our four basic ink types is whether the recipes have any substantial volatile content. A lot of the key performance differences are based on how the carrier solvent absorbs and/or evaporates. Oil and water-based inks rely on these mechanisms, whilst the UV and hotmelt inks convert much more quickly from liquid to solid, thus reducing effects like ink bleed as well as paper deformation. Of course, since they do not lose any volume, the UV/hotmelt options inevitably give thicker film and can result in a different feel of the printed product. Now that you have a general idea of the different types and colorants used, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s talk in a little more detail about all the ingredients that can affect the behavior of ink, taking Saturation of colors can shift as the dye migrates with time and are prone to oxidative deterioration and fading under sunlight through UV exposure. This can be seen clearly below, which shows a faded print logo compared to the original print made with dye-based inks on a desktop printer.

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DIGITAL & INKJET

water-based as our example. Two of the most important materials are the pigment dispersion and the resin, which give the ink its end-use properties. These are followed closely by the co-solvents and surfactant that influence the print process itself – such as drying.

Pigments vs. Dyes The single biggest reason pigment has replaced dye for many applications is lightfastness, also known as UV fade resistance. Dyes can develop strong colors, but the saturation of these colors can shift as the dye migrates with time and is prone to oxidative deterioration and fading under sunlight through UV exposure. Print permanence is an important consideration for the retention of records, and the increasing use of pigment colorant has helped inkjet compete with electrophotography in this respect, although the use of special coatings means dye-based inks are still use for archiving. From an ink-making perspective, pigment colorants take more effort to produce than a dye. Usually a dye can be weighed straight into a formula and readily mixed into the base. For more difficult-to-dissolve 22

dyes, it may be necessary to make an intermediate solution that is then weighed as a liquid. For pigments, however, the raw material powder must be dispersed into a vehicle to

Many inks from the best-known companies often also use proprietary material in the dispersion, thus making their technology specific to the print process. allow it to be milled to the desired particle size. The milling process uses complex and expensive equipment and much more energy than simply mixing in the dye. This is where the cost comes in.

Resins reduce or eliminate print defects caused by ink rewetting/smearing which can be seen in the image above.

Many small ink producers buy their pigment dispersions from a supplier and will simply mix them into an ink a bit like a dye. In this case, their focus will be filtration and ensuring they get the right stability with the rest of their materials by monitoring particle size, for example. For the larger volume manufacturers, it is more cost effective to become vertically integrated and make the dispersion, or at least develop it and engage a toll manufacturer. Many inks from the best-known companies often also use proprietary material in the dispersion, thus making their technology specific to the print process. As a result, OEM’s attain complete control over the pigment dispersion formulation and many of its key performance factors. This can be a bigger security feature than any RFID chip on the container.

Resins The main role of the resin is to act as a “binder.” Resin, which refers to an ink’s polymer, forms the resistance property of the ink layer by forming a film as the water

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DIGITAL & INKJET evaporates, often by some additional cross-linking. Resins reduce or eliminate print defects caused by ink rewetting/smearing. From a jetting perspective, the resin binder is also an important viscosity modifier, since it helps the formulator balance the water content without using too much co-solvent or humectant, which can slow the drying. A resin’s polymers are either soluble, like the dyes discussed above, or form a suspension of particles, either as a dispersion or emulsion. The term “latex” has often been used to refer to the resin in an ink, although that term is somewhat more specific than intended by many using it. Not all resins are artificial plastics; many (inkjet) inks have been made using shellac, for example, which comes from natural sources. Of all the polymers used regularly in non-inkjet ink formulations, only a minority can be jetted, and of those, many can result in irreversible damage to the average print head. For this reason, just like for pigment dispersions, many major printer suppliers developed their own proprietary materials with the added benefit to the OEM of making them even more difficult to copy.

Humectants and Co-solvents These materials normally represent the major component in the ink by volume (other than water). A humectant is a molecule that holds on to water and can therefore prevent evaporative loss from the nozzle. As a result, they are important for nozzle health and reliable printing. Unfortunately, they usually have a high boiling point, so as printers get faster, the amount of humectant has decreased significantly. Industrial and production inks are now quite different in this respect to office inks, which are designed to be easily kept

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printing-ready between long periods of being idle. Water-soluble co-solvents also have an important role in controlling the rate of penetration into plain paper. They may also heavily influence how the resin comes out of solution and forms a film, which can also affect ink bleed. The overall result of trying to balance so many requirements is that typical inks tend to be made up of a mixture of quite a few co-solvents.

Surfactants Since water has a very high surface tension, getting it to jet well, penetrate paper or wet-out on less-absorbent surfaces is where surfactants become important. Surfactants are like the fairy dust of inkjet formulation, where a tiny quantity can make a massive difference to the behavior, and finding the right one can be the secret to success. This is especially the case for single-pass or “pagewide” printers because of close dependence of the print quality on the ink spread. As a result, the surfactant(s) in the ink also influence the tendency of ink to bleed. Because they migrate to new surfaces, however, many surfactants can also stabilize foam, so it is sometimes necessary to add defoamers to the ink as a counterbalance. This means inks can have a number of different additives all at once.

Defoamers Defoamers can be physical or chemical in nature. Either way, the intention is to break the surface of the bubbles, so they collapse. To achieve this, defoamers are generally a bit less compatible in the base. Therefore, if there are both surfactants and defoamers, then the balance can be important to avoid irregular wetting (mottle)

or even pinholes. For this reason special chemical additives have been developed that try to do both these jobs.

Rheology Modifiers We mentioned viscosity in relation to resins already. The problems is that many print heads require a viscosity much higher than water, so special additives called rheology modifiers may be used in addition to binder resin. Normally added in small quantities, these materials can increase viscosity and help the ink formulator avoid adding too much cosolvent (and affecting the dry speed). Rheological additives are common in paints too, but they have to be used very cautiously in inkjet inks because they can have different properties under the high shear condition created by the jetting process.

Biocide / Fungicide Finally, one of the most important additives to water-based inks is the biocide/fungicide. The role of this material, which is commonly found in household cleaners, is to stop the ink from growing biologically (fungus, mold) whilst on the shelf or being transported. By their nature, the biocides are hazardous, so need to be added carefully. Typically used at very low levels, their effectiveness can be influenced by other materials, so shelf-life stability testing is an important part of aqueous ink development. To summarize, inkjet inks are highly complex, and it takes years to fully design the chemistry balance that is needed for the type and reliability of a particular print head technology, as well as the substrate. This complexity is why each OEM ink’s chemistry is different and why warranties aren’t honored if a nonapproved ink is used. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21092261 ■

November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

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TEXTILES & APPAREL

BOBST Ups the Stakes

with Next-Generation Hybrid Press and More Jean-Pascal Bobst

Cary Sherburne talks with CEO Jean-Pascal Bobst Article by Cary Sherburne

OBST has been providing solutions to the printing and packaging industries for four generations, and more recently has added digital textile printing to the mix. Perhaps when you think of BOBST, you think die-cutting, folder gluer, flexo; but these days, the company is so much more. We checked in with CEO Jean-Pascal Bobst to get the latest news and his views about the industry. PN: You had a pretty significant presence at Labelexpo Europe and made some exciting announcements. Can you share the highlights with our readers? JPB: What we showed at Labelexpo Europe demonstrates our vision of the future of the industry – more digitization, more connectivity and the ability to supply most, if not all, required solutions for flexo and digital. We see growing demand for labels, packages and packaging machinery, and this has driven growth for us in the last few years. Along with that, we have made significant digital investments, including in our Mouvent technology,

which supports digital printing in five industries, and into Industry 4.0 solutions that we believe will shape the future of packaging production across labels, flexible packaging, folding carton and corrugated board. The goal is to move from a PDF file to an end product with as little human intervention as possible. It’s all about the ability for stakeholders to be connected to a digital and automated workflow, accessing cloud-based information anytime, anywhere, for a flexible and agile collaborative operation. BOBST can provide software, ink, machines and strong relationships that help customers make the necessary transformations in their businesses. PN: You talk about REVO as an important part of this go-forward strategy. Can you explain what that is? JPB: REVO, which was started in 2013, is a group of leading companies in labels and packaging. REVO stands for Digital Flexo REVOlution and aims to establish a new standard for labels and packaging production. To date, nine other companies have joined us in this effort.

BOBST MASTER DM5 Hybrid Label Press

PN: The MASTER DM5 digital label press you announced at Labelexpo is an example of this strategy in action. I see that it also incorporates the Mouvent Cluster technology for delivery of digital UV inkjet. JPB: Yes, it is a multi-process printing and converting system that can print at up to 100 meters per minute and has on-the-fly, non-stop job changeover. It’s a hybrid analog/ digital solution that demonstrates the ability to go from PDF to final product, all in-line and with proper quality control systems in each stage of the process. In addition to in-line flexo and digital printing, it also offers high-speed semi-rotary die cutting, as well as on-the-fly die-cutting unit changes, non-stop waste stripping path change for maximum uptime, and a variety of foil stamping options. With the inkjet component, of course, packages can be personalized, versioned, serialized or customized right in line. We believe this hybrid approach to packaging manufacturing is the future of the industry. PN: But you do offer some alldigital solutions as well?

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TEXTILES & APPAREL JPB: Yes. At Labelexpo, we showed the Mouvent LB702-WB six-color label printer with sustainable water-based inks as well as the Mouvent LB701UV with six colors plus white with a robust UV ink set. Those printers run at 100 and 70 meters per minute, respectively, with 1200 dpi resolution. PN: At ITMA, we saw the new digital textile printer Mouvent launched. JPB: The Mouvent TX802 multipass digital textile printer runs at 400 square meters per hour at a print resolution of 200 dpi with a choice of reactive, acid, disperse or pigment inks, so we can address any fabric type. PN: What are you seeing in terms of installations in textiles? JPB: We have 15 units installed, with two in China. Right now, about two-thirds are TX801, the 200-squaremeters-per-hour version, but we expect to see that flip to two-thirds TX802 because you can double the output within about the same footprint. We are putting efforts into reducing ink waste and therefore water pollution. If you look at total cost of ownership numbers, our printers cost about 20% less than others in the market per linear meter.

Quality

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End-to-End

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Mouvent LB702-WB Water-Based Digital Label Press

PN: Both label and textiles are in the midst of an analog-to-digital transformation. How do you see that progressing? JPB: In labels and packaging, as soon as you have Industry 4.0 solutions with the right print quality and total cost of ownership, digital printing will take a large share of packaging printing on many different substrates. Our Mouvent water-based inks are 100% food safe compliant and more cost-effective that UV. We believe we have the solutions for what the industry will need tomorrow. The transformation is not as far along in textiles, but the same conditions apply. PN: Drupa will be here before we know it. You launched a lot of new products at Labelexpo. Will we see more new products from you at drupa 2020? And what do you think the focus of drupa 2020 in general will be? JPB: With Industry 4.0, most of the players will be coming to drupa with connected solutions. We will show how you can offer full connectivity within a production plant as well as better serve customers from a software and application standpoint. For BOBST, this is a big evolution, but it is necessary to become a one-stop shop from software to applications, to applications and ink chemistry, to print and finishing. We are now well down that path. We will continue

to focus on the delivery of products along this strategy year after year. PN: What advice do you have to printers/converters about how to expand their business offerings? What are the hot applications they can explore, and how do they research those options? JPB: Connectivity and automation are important. We delivered some of this at Labelexpo and there will be more to come at drupa. We also think people should be looking at opportunities around sustainability for all substrates. Plastic bans, concerns about recyclability, and UV migration should be a major concern for everyone and should be taken seriously. That is not a joke or a political message. It’s a reality, and we think we can demonstrate ways for people to be more sustainable, in both packaging and textiles. We have to come to market with solutions which fit our customers’ and brand owners’ expectations on print quality, sustainability and TCO. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091457 ■ Cary Sherburne Cary Sherburne is a well-known author, journalist and marketing consultant whose practice is focused on marketing communications strategies for the printing and publishing industries.

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FINISHING & MAILING

There’s a Real Person Behind Those “Love Mail” Numbers Sometimes we forget that there are real people behind the direct mail data. Last summer, I got to put a face to a data point. It made me wonder, “Now what?” Article by Heidi Tolliver-Walker

hen I went to church one past Sunday, I wasn’t expecting to be treated to a mini-sermon on the value of direct mail. Yet, there it was. The speaking pastor that week, Kirk, who fits into the older millennial (late 30s) set, opened with the line: “Who doesn’t love to get mail?” (Did I mention that he’s a Millennial?) He continued, “You know what I do first when I get home and I’m carrying something, whether it’s my work bag or the groceries? I go to the mailbox. Before I even go into the house, I set everything down and walk down to the mailbox to see what’s there.” When delivering a piece of content, you choose a hook you are pretty certain most people in your audience will relate to. Sermons are no different. For me, as someone in an industry used to people saying direct mail is dead, this made Kirk’s opener pretty remarkable. Not to mention that ours is a multi-site church with thousands of people attending services in person or watching online every week, most of them on the younger side. That’s a lot of people to assume love mail the way he does. But then, the Direct Marketing Association does report that 56% of Americans consider receiving mail “a real joy.” So when it comes to love of mail, either the pastor or the DMA— maybe both—is on to something. Kirk then proceeded to describe the excitement of sifting through the mail with great anticipation, even describing 26

the let-down when he gets to the mailbox, forgetting that it’s a holiday, and he opens it up to find it empty. I know I was supposed to be focused on the spiritual point he was getting to, but for several minutes, I was processing his choice to open with these stories. First, it was a reminder that direct mail isn’t dead. Not by a long shot. Second, it was a reminder that, especially for the younger generations, mail is more than a functional way to deliver information. There is something special about it. As I was reminded that morning, this is not just a happy phrase that people in the printing industry say to make themselves feel good. It’s actually true. Consumers, and Millennials in particular, do, in fact, get pumped about mail. According to Gallup, 95% of millennials say they “love” getting mail. That’s more than Americans overall. Why do Millennials love mail so much? I’ve heard it suggested that in a world inundated with digital media, the tangible nature of direct mail is a novelty. Perhaps. Or maybe it’s that Millennials receive more of their bills by text or email than older generations, so when they go to the mailbox, there is a higher chance that the mail won’t be a bill. Whatever it is, it was striking to me to see the

data I write about all the time come to life out of the mouth of a real person. So what do we do about it? How do we capitalize? Keep sending the same-old, same-old mail we always have? Or continually evolve mail into new fun, relatable experiences that the younger generation will continue to enjoy receiving? Maybe that’s adding interactive and “experiential” elements to engage them and add to the fun. Or maybe it’s the content, such as tying the purchase to a charitable cause or the benefits of the product to the greater good (purchasing a bike, for example, becomes being kind to the Earth rather than just saving money on gas). Whatever it is, that’s for each marketer to figure out based on its customer base. But the point is, there are real people behind those numbers coming out of the marketing associations and postal services. Putting a real face behind one of those data points was fun, and it makes me excited to see how direct mail will continue to evolve, not just into a channel of greater functionality, but into one of delight. Find article here PrintingNews. com/21091722 ■

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MANAGEMENT

The Purpose of a Business Serve your customers first. Then do the math. Article by Tom Crouser

he purpose of a business is not to make you money. Nope. The purpose of the business is to serve its customers. If the business does that successfully, it can spin off rich rewards. Still that’s not the goal. The goal is to provide exceptional products and services. How it provides you with cash while providing products and services is seen in the cash-flow formula. Sales minus direct materials, minus wages paid to others, minus overhead, equals income before owner’s compensation, minus owner’s salary, equals net income. But we’re still not down to cash flow. One adequate way to figure cash flow is to then add back depreciation and amortization, if any, and interest. Then deduct payments for loans on your balance sheet. Why? Payments on equipment is comprised of principal and interest, like your house payment. While interest expense is shown on your income statement, principal repayment is not. So, add depreciation and interest to net income and then deduct total loans payments. A negative result will give you a good estimate if you have a cash leak. At least it will come close. This will also tell you if you are upside down in your payments, Tom Crouser Tom Crouser can be reached at tom@ cprint.com for more information on how CPrint International can be of help to you in your business or call his cell (304) 541-3714.

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meaning you pay out more than you deduct from your income. Now, this doesn’t work well if you have large loans that aren’t equipment-based, like lines of credit, but most of us don’t. The only way to really know what’s happening to cash is to use a “Statement of Cash Flows.” It’s one of the basic financial statements that shows absolutely, positively what happened to cash. It’s available in QuickBooks and other accounting software. You may need professional assistance in setting it up properly and learning what it says, but once done, you’ll know exactly where your cash goes. So, back to the purpose of the business. It’s not to make you money. It’s to serve its customers in a way that pays for everything, including hidden equipment payments, and then have money left over for owners. But you’re not finished yet. The income statement is but the instant replay. It doesn’t tell you what the score is nor your position on the football field. That’s the job of the scoreboard, aka: balance sheet. The balance sheet balances. Assets, or all the stuff the business has, equals liabilities, the total amount the business owes. Liabilities plus equity, or the part you own, equals total assets and thus, the balance sheet balances. Everything the business has is assets. All assets are either cash now or will turn into cash over time. Cash is cash, obviously. Accounts receivable and inventory turn into cash eventually. Equipment turns into cash through usage, as it creates sales. And at some point, it is used

up, so we get rid of it. So, everything that either turns into cash or uses cash (payables, taxes payable, notes payable) within 12 months is current. Either a current asset or a current liability. A strong company has a current ratio (current assets/current liabilities) of 2:1 or greater or $2 in current assets for every $1 in current liabilities. That’s because current assets eventually turn into cash while current liabilities are things owed right now. So, we need more current assets to have enough cash to pay the current liabilities when they are due. But that’s not enough either. A second strength measure is days’ cash on hand. A simplified way of calculating is to divide yearly sales (say $365,000) by number of days in a year (365) to get one day’s cash on hand (not precise, but close enough for our work) or $1,000 in this example. If you have $20,000 of cash on hand (or accounts that can be converted into cash within 24 hours), then you have 20 days’ cash on hand. What is needed? 30. You need both a 2:1 current ratio and 30 days cash on hand. Then you need to have positive cash flow after you deduct payments from net income (adding back interest and depreciation). From that positive cash flow, plan on what else you’re going to do such as buy equipment, give raises or whatever. Now, if you have all of that, then reward yourself with what’s left over. And that’s how you prosper. Find article here PrintingNews. com/21091478 ■

November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

10/21/19 12:35 PM

FINISHING & MAILING

Your Postal Strategy Develop a strategy now for future growth. Article by Christine Erna

oes your organization have a postal strategy? Mailing may be considered an ancillary service offering for a professional printing company, or it may be your core offering as a mail service provider. In either case, mail represents a large expenditure measured in actual dollars and/or as a percentage of the total cost of any project that is mailed for your organization and your clients. What emphasis does the organization place on developing a team that has the knowledge, resources, contacts and expertise to optimize the organizational mailing revenue, accounts and expenditures? Are you getting by with temporary production staff or a few “cross trained” press/bindery operations team members? Neither of these models is advised. Without trained and dedicated staff, no one is fully engaged with learning, Christine Erna Christine Erna is President of Strategic Postal Advisors. She consults to improve address quality while reducing return mail expenses. She can be reached at: cje@strategicpostaladvisors.com .

measuring, monitoring, reporting and communicating the specifications/ criteria for different mailing requirements in the organization. These can range from postal requirements, design consultation and how participation in the U.S. Postal Service’s 2019 Promotions can benefit your clients and the organization. Are you offering advisory services to your clients on things such as data hygiene services to cleanse their database files? Knowledge regarding things, like how many records in the data are considered undeliverable, saves them money and saves your organization possible assessments from the Postal Service due to non-conformance with the Postal Service thresholds represented on the Mailer Scorecard. Why would anyone mail these pieces? There is a direct correlation and impact to a marketing campaigns effectiveness metrics (i.e. response rate, ROI, etc.) if data hygiene is not performed and properly managed for every mailing. Are you presenting Full-Service Intelligent Mail? If not, what are the roadblocks preventing implementation? If you are a Full-Service mailer, are you taking advantage of all the free benefits offered? Managing these free

WhatTheyThink - Printing News November 2019

services can be an added revenue stream for your company, which is highly profitable since there is no cost to you for these free services. There are many varying aspects, twists and turns in managing mail, postage and the Postal Service’s requirements/regulations. Establishing a postal strategy for your company is a sound business practice and once established, its processes provide an organization the ability to ensure consistent mail preparation, gain data visibility and develop a knowledge base within the company to support the complexity of mail and postage when not properly managed. There are many resources within the industry that support postal strategy development. ■■ Professional training and education for employees and clients ■■ Establishing, supporting and managing creation of a Postal Governance Strategy ■■ Postal One Mailer Scorecard Monitoring ■■ Postal coaching ■■ Postal Affairs awareness Companies engage industry expertise because postage is typically reported by line of business with little central governance/control. None the less, Postal Service regulations are complex and change

FINISHING & MAILING regularly, reinforcing the need for postal governance to develop strong processes, professional management and dedicated oversight of the budgets and total spend associated with postage. Organizational cost reduction initiatives do not always support this strategy within an organization. In short, postal intelligence and sustained compliance result in significant savings and cost avoidance associated with assessments and nonconformance.

What are your Postage Management practices? The rising cost of postage and mail-related expenses are having a growing impact on your organization’s bottom line. Now more than ever it is critical that you efficiently manage your mailing and postage expenses and accurately charge back and recover mailing costs. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to be able to have an enterprise view of postage utilization. Are you effectively managing your postage expenses? Do you know how much your company spends on customer statements, notices and other mailings? A typical engagement consists of extensive gap analysis of a client’s beginning-to-end current direct mail communication programs that include: ■■ Current state of address and data cleansing processes ■■ Workflow ■■ Vendor management ■■ Physical mailpiece review ■■ Postal Service move update compliance ■■ IMb strategy and compliance ■■ Undeliverable and return mail

Mail Production & Mailpiece Analysis Mail is a very specialized industry. Data management, print and mail are

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complex industries that require specific knowledge in order to be effective. Postal resources can provide insight to improve workflow of production, improved efficiency of direct mail process (internal and vendor) and review mail pieces for compliance. ■■ Document LOB functions that impact the quality and cost of mail. ■■ Analyze interdependencies between processes. ■■ Validate gaps and savings opportunities. ■■ Gather metrics that contribute to total cost of mail (TCO). ■■ Measure effectiveness of current processes. ■■ Measure compliance with USPS requirements. ■■ Compare processes to best practices established at other companies. ■■ Implement quick win savings opportunities. ■■ Root cause analysis of factors that impact the efficiency of mailing processes ■■ Recommended changes to data, print, mail and return mail processes. ■■ Financial justification for process changes ■■ Revise process maps that compare the improvements to best practices. ■■ Control plan to track savings post implementation Proactively engaging an industry expert to share practical solutions to manage/influence the direct mail and postal value chain will result in higher revenues due to improved management processes. Both revenue and revenue retention will increase through expanded service offerings. Operational efficiencies and postage related cost reductions will result in significant savings for the company and its customers. These cost savings will make you a preferred

vendor driving even more work from new customers you have not been servicing. Strategic, sustainable growth is fed by compliance resulting from “common sense” processes and technology where appropriate. All of this mitigates risk, increases transparency, shifts internal cultural paradigms and most importantly drives learning and engagement across the organization. Participation in various print and mailing industry associations, groups, events and online groups, has directly benefited me, my career and professional growth. Branding, marketing, sponsorships, blogs, podcasts and webinars are available channels and opportunities to support your engagement and involvement in the various associations that can provide the network and support for your organization to reach and attain your milestones and goals in growing your business.

Expected Results and Customer Value Every organization involved with mail strives to identify and correct knowledge gaps, improve customer communication, assure compliance with complicated postal regulations, reduce the total cost of mailing by improving all processes, control and understand postage and carrier spend, maximize the quality of each clients’ name and address database and finally, enhance communication processes. If you are looking to add these skills immediately, they are available in the industry through Strategic Postal Advisors and other similar companies. Where are all the resources you need to develop these skills internally? Remember this is not a sprint but more like a marathon. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21092290 ■

November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

10/21/19 12:32 PM

SALES

Have a Plan

Gain a 20% increase in sales productivity through pre-call planning. Article by Lisa Magnuson

ost sales people agree that planning ahead of time for important sales calls is a precursor for successful call outcomes. However, based on my observations in working with hundreds of sales people over the years, many continue to “wing it.” Sales call after sales call, they leave the entire outcome to chance. Yet, Lisa Magnuson Lisa Magnuson founded Top Line Sales in 2005. It has a proven track record of helping companies overcome the barriers to winning TOP Line Accounts. Learn more at www.toplinesales.com .

statistics are clear. Sellers can gain at least a 20% bump in productivity through consistent pre-call planning. What does a 20% increase mean for a sales person? It means 20% improvement in close ratios, more revenue and a huge boost in sales commissions.

Pre-Call Planning Overview The goal of pre-call planning, used in all stages of the sales process, is to think through all the important aspects of a sales call in advance of the meeting. It starts with a clear understanding of which stage of your sales process you’re in and where the prospect is in their buying journey. Advance planning ensures you and all participants are on the

same page prior to the customer meeting, thereby increasing the overall effectiveness of the call. Precall planning frees sales people up to truly listen and stay flexible and responsive during critical customer and prospect meetings. Ultimately, consistent pre-call planning improves your ability to manage desired change for the customer effectively in order to optimize your sales results. Pre-Call Planning is not… ■■ Simply having an agenda ■■ Doing surface level research before a call ■■ Planning for your customer meeting without involving all the meeting participants from your team ■■ Sketching out a couple of points

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SALES for your meeting at the last minute What Happens when you’re not prepared? ■■ No sale ■■ Stalled sales process ■■ Lack of confidence (from customer) in you and your company ■■ Waste of time – both yours and your prospects’ ■■ Reduced percentage of securing future meetings ■■ No agreement on next steps/ sales process in limbo And the list can go on. We’ve all experienced the negative consequences of a poorly orchestrated sales call. However, the stakes keep getting higher. Consider the rising number of attempts to secure a prospect meeting today. It may take as many as 12 touch points to secure just one prospect meeting. All those touch points contribute to the real costs of that prospect meeting. Do we really want to leave the quality of the meeting to chance?

Successful Meeting Checklist Use this checklist to make sure that you and your account team cover all your bases during pre-call planning. ■■ Have you engaged the account team in formal pre-call planning? ■■ What are the objectives and purpose for the meeting? Does your agenda support attainment of meeting goals? ■■ Have you forwarded the agenda in advance to all participants and asked for input? ■■ Have you checked the account team and resources list to make sure the right people have been included? ■■ Are meeting logistics clear to all participants? ■■ Have you checked for recent news or updates relevant to the

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customer prior to the meeting? ■■ D o you know how will you differentiate yourself and your company through this meeting? Are the meeting attendees on your team clear on the “Win Themes” so they can be used throughout the meeting? ■■ Do you have information (facts, statistics, insights) prepared to disrupt their thinking about the status quo and thereby help motivate them to want to move forward to solve their problems?

Consider the rising number of attempts to secure a prospect meeting today. It may take as many as 12 touch points to secure just one prospect meeting. ■■ D o you know where the company is in their buying cycle? What is your prospect doing, thinking and feeling at the current stage? ■■ Do you have thoughtful questions prepared to help move the customer forward? ■■ Have you anticipated the issues or objections that may come up during the meeting? Do you have “Plan B” developed to address? ■■ Have you anticipated the next steps that you would like to occur after the meeting? ■■ Will you end the meeting by

■■

■■ ■■

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asking attendees if the session was valuable? Are you prepared to follow up with the meeting attendees within 48-hours to keep momentum high? Do you have a “parking lot” for side issues or tangents? Do you have clear assignments for roles to make the meeting run smoothly? Do you have a reliable system for capturing key information and action items in a format that’s sharable with the entire account team? Have you thought about ideas to make the meeting engaging, fun or motivating? Do you have a list of people to thank for their role in making the meeting successful?

Summary of Benefits ■■ I ncrease sales call effectiveness and thereby close ratios by 20% or more ■■ Accelerate your sales process through strategic thinking and careful planning ■■ Ensure customer meetings are productive through an agenda where all participants are on the same page ■■ Enhance your ability to truly listen and stay focused and flexible ■■ Avoid “bad” calls and the associated fallout of a poorly executed prospect exchange

Free Pre-Call Planning Tool Available for Download To help you jump-start your precall planning efforts and ensure a higher degree of success, I’m offering an easy to use “Pre-Call Planning Tool.” Simply visit www.toplinesales. com to download this invaluable tool today. Find article here PrintingNews. com/21091460 ■

November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

10/21/19 12:28 PM

HUMAN RESOURCES

Teamwork –

NASCAR Shows How We can learn a lot from a pit crew. Story by Debra Thompson

ately I have become very interested in watching car races, particularly the NASCAR events. I am learning more about the different teams, the scoring and how this sport works. The most interesting facet of these events to me Debra Thompson Debra Thompson is president of TG & Associates, a consulting firm specializing in “The Human Side of Business” specifically for the graphics industry. Debra can be reached at debra@tgassociates.com or www.tgassociates.com .

is observing the teamwork. I always assumed that much of the work was the responsibility of the driver to pull off the win, but I have now realized that this is truly a team sport. Teamwork in this sport, as well as in most sports, can make a 10th of a second difference resulting in a win or a loss. Every single member of the pit crew must be on top of their game when that race driver brings in their car for tires, refueling or repairs. Just one person missing a beat during these critical pit stops can lead to a loss for that team. It’s not only the pit crew that must be spot on, but the crew chief must get the race car set up for the driver’s

success, make critical late-race strategy decisions, call the shots, communicate with the driver, give the pit crew directions and manage the road crew (mechanics and general utility). And obviously, the driver is the one who benefits from the teamwork. After Chase Elliott won the Bank of America ROVAL 400 in Charlotte, the crew chief was interviewed and asked what strengths he brought to the team. I found it very interesting that he did not mention any of the tasks that I listed above. He quickly stated that his strength was keeping a cool head and making sure all 21 team members kept a level head as well. He went on to say that excellent

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HUMAN RESOURCES shared by a team. It is how people work together toward a common goal and how they treat each other. A key component in all of this is “trust.” “Trust is important not just in our personal lives, but also in the workplace,” according to Sandler Training. “When employees do not trust each other or their managers, all sorts of problems start to arise: collaboration and communication stagnates, innovation ceases, employee engagement declines, productivity falls and time spent in the workplace becomes unbearable.” So how do we build and maintain trust within an organization? Throughout my many years of owning my own business and consulting with many different organizations, I can safely say that trust is a result of healthy communication. Healthy communication must start at the top level and be fostered throughout. Productive communication covers too many topics for me to cover in just one article, so here are two ideas that can make a difference.

Listening Skills

communication is critical to their success. There is so much pressure and tension throughout the race day that they cannot afford even one miscommunication, one heated discussion or one bad attitude. This got me thinking about how critical it is to have the right team in place in order to be a success in whatever your end game is. Good teamwork doesn’t just happen on its own. It needs to be cultivated, become part of the workplace philosophy and integral to your people, processes and culture. By the most basic definition, a team culture is made up of the values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviors

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Many times people have selective hearing. They only hear what they want to hear. Some people are too busy doing the talking and too impatient to listen. This type of communication can lead to mistakes. When communicating with people with poor listening skills, ask them to clarify what they just heard from you. Ensure that there is a real understanding of the conversation you just had.

Assertiveness vs. Aggressive Behavior vs. Non-Aggressive Behavior Way too often problems arise when someone is either aggressive or non-aggressive in their tone or words. Assertiveness is the healthiest

form of communication. It is direct and honest. It shows self-respect and respect for others. It looks for win/win outcomes. Non-assertive behavior is passive and indirect. It shows signs of not wanting to commit or taking responsibility. This type of behavior does not enhance teamwork. Everyone on the team needs to be an active participant. Aggressive behavior is unacceptable on any team. This type of communication can be active or passive, direct or indirect. It always communicates an impression of superiority and disrespect. It can be verbal or non-verbal. Body language alone can say so much.

Different opinions can occur while building a great team. We need to encourage brainstorming and problem-solving. Conflict Management is important to healthy communication. Different opinions can occur while building a great team. We need to encourage brainstorming and problem-solving. But we need to be sure it does not become personal, which can create disagreements, aggressive verbal attacks or threats and ultimatums. As the crew chief said after the race, his job is to set the driver up for success. He always needs to keep a cool head and make sure that everyone is always communicating in the most productive manner. I believe this is the job of every person who is responsible for a team. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091894 ■

November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

10/21/19 12:08 PM

WATCH LIST

Bobst’s Transformation and the Digitization of Flexo Jean-Pascal Bobst, CEO of Bobst, talks to David Zwang at Labelexpo about the company’s vision. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21089912

HP SPS OEMs launch wide format, full color solutions for mail and specialty printing Paul Barton from HP Specialty Printing Systems (SPS) talks about the SPS division. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21091451

Brand Print Americas to Launch in 2020 Thayer Long, President of APTech, talks about APTech’s recent partnership with Tarsus and offers a preview of 2020’s inaugural Brand Print Americas. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21090665

Océ ProStream Series Product Updates 2019 The high quality and high speeds of the Océ ProStream™ series just got even better thanks to some important updates. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21091063

Goodway Group Adopts Production Inkjet David Zwang talks to Mike Jenoski, President and CEO of Goodway Group of Massachusetts, a print service provider that serves many businesses in the area. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21089918

Intellus’ Inkjet Journey Kelley Holmes talks to MJ Ortiz of Intellus, an omnichannel marketing company that has been growing rapidly over the past three years. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21089914

Mutoh’s Next-Gen Eco-Solvent Printers Miguel Gonzalez, talks about Mutoh’s new eco-solvent printers which launched in September. The machines have been redesigned from previous generations. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21092226

Standard Finishing’s Red Hot Technologies Paul Steinke of Standard Finishing Systems showcases two Red Hot Technology Award-winning products demonsted at last week’s PRINT 19. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21091059

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Printware announces their new full color mail solution based on HP FI-1000 Printware’s Tim Murphy talks about a new entry in the company’s iJetColor line. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21091452

Xanté launches their new full color specialty printing solution based on HP FI-1000 Mark Priede of Xante previews the new full-color specialty printing solution based on the HP FI-1000. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21091448

Customer Communications at PRINT 19 InfoTrends’ Pat McGrew and Marc Mascara discuss customer communications software and solutions on display at last week’s PRINT 19. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21091857

Frank Talks to Daniel Dejan at PRINT 19 Frank talks to the extremely famous Daniel Dejan of Sappi at PRINT 19 about his travels, educating people about design, graphics, print, and a new book. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21090659

Kirk-Rudy Launches the Memjet-Powered FireJet 4C Kirk-Rudy’s Bob Mills showcases the new FireJet 4C, a Memjet-powered four-color inkjet printing system. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21092224

Koenig & Bauer Expands Into Corrugated Kelley Holmes talks to Mark Hischar of Koenig & Bauer about the company’s expansion into virtually every printing technology and application. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21091897

Graphco: “The Unfair Advantage” Graphco’s Chris Manley talks about the technologies the company was demonstrating at PRINT 19, including its chemical embossing system. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21092232

Warren Werbitt Says, “Be a Statistic!” Warren Werbitt joins the WhatTheyThink team for a new regular video series. Warren looks at the “Trade Show Wars”—PRINT vs. PRINTING United. Find video here: www.printingnews.com/21090251

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November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

10/21/19 11:58 AM

MARKETING TECHNOLOGY

Marketing Lessons from Top Retailers vs. Fastest Growing Ones Study by Iterable looking at the marketing strategies of “top retailers” vs. “fastest growing retailers” during the two-week period between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Article by Heidi Tolliver-Walker

tudy by Iterable looking at the marketing strategies of “top retailers” vs. “fastest growing retailers” during the two-week period between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The results? The fastest growing retailers were more focused on “near sales,” less likely to send promotional emails, more likely to re-engage abandoned cart shoppers, and less likely to use multiple channels to do it. I recently downloaded a study from Iterable titled “All Things Retail: The Iterable User Engagement Report.” The study was designed to investigate the marketing strategies of 50 retailers: the top 25 retailers and their 25 fastest growing competitors during two-week period between Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2018. The top retailers were defined as those boasting the highest CAGR over five years. The fastest growing Heidi Tolliver-Walker Heidi Tolliver-Walker has been a commercial and digital printing industry analyst, feature writer, and author for more than 20 years. Her industry commentary can be found in national printing publications, blogs, and marketing publications.

retailers were defined as those that drove the highest web sales growth the previous year. To gather their data, researchers created accounts for all 50 retailers, then monitored how many marketing communications they received from each retailer, the frequency and duration of those communications, and the content of those communications. They also looked at whether the communications were cross-channel. They studied four different categories: welcome emails, promotional emails, cart abandonment emails, and crosschannel messaging in the categories of apparel & accessories, electronics, home improvement, housewares, and mass merchants. The report is comprehensive, so it was tough to pick out one aspect to talk about. Ultimately, what captivated me was the difference between the top retailers and the fastest growing retailers. You’d think that the fastest growing retailers would be growing so quickly because they are doing more of everything. More marketing = more results, right? However, this was not the case.

Welcome Messaging Overall, 70% of these top 50 retailers sent welcome campaigns.

This means that 30% had no welcome messaging at all (an interesting customer retention technique). Of those sending welcome campaigns: ■■ 71% sent more than one message. ■■ 16% engaged cross-channel. ■■ Average number of messages sent was 2.3. ■■ Average welcome campaign transpired over 3.3 days. ■■ 37% welcomed new users by name. Most of the welcome messaging shared discounts on first purchases, discussed account holder benefits, and offered tips for getting the most out of their memberships. You might expect the fastest growing companies to be more likely to send welcome emails, but they were less likely to do so (72% of top companies had welcome email campaigns vs. 68% of the

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MARKETING TECHNOLOGY fastest growing companies). The study did not provide any additional comparisons between the two groups when it came to welcome email campaigns.

Promotional Campaigns Where the top companies and the fastest growing companies differed more significantly was in their promotional emails. Overall, only 76% of retailers studied sent promotional messaging during the study period. This included 84% of the top retailers, but only 68% of the fastest growing retailers. During the study period, researchers received anywhere from a single message to more than 30 messages from each brand. The average number of promotions sent was 9.7 over the two-week period. The top companies averaged 11.4 messages, compared to only 7.9 for the fastest growing companies. Top brands were also more likely to promote cross-channel (52%) compared to their fastest growing competitors (41%). Noted the researchers: Looking at these numbers, it could be inferred that the fastest growing companies may be edging out the top companies when it comes to message ROI—lower volume, higher customer value versus a steady diet of catch-all promotions.

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Another noteworthy difference between the top companies and the fastest growing companies was their incentives. Top companies were more likely to offer percentage off discounts (76% vs. 41%), while the fastest growing companies were more likely to offer free items (29% vs. 19%), including free shipping (29% vs. 14%). If they were going to offer a discount, the fastest growing companies were more likely to base it on real dollars rather than percentages (41% vs. 14%).

Cart Abandonment Campaigns If the fastest growing companies weren’t focusing on sending promotional emails, what were they focused on? Cart abandonment. Only 28% of top retailers sent cart abandonment campaigns, while 60% of the fastest growing retailers did. The fastest growing retailers were not only more likely to be using cart abandonment messaging, but they were also more proactive in them. They averaged 2.1 messages sent one day after abandonment, while top companies sent 2.9 messages after 2.3 days. “Top companies sent more abandonment messages over time,” the researchers noted, “while the fastest growing companies opted for fewer messages inside a shorter time window.” Although they were more proactive, the fastest growing retailers were once again less likely

to use cross-channel messaging. Only 7% used cross-channel messaging to encourage re-engagement, while 14% of top retailers did. Forty percent of the fastest growing retailers also offered a cart abandonment incentive, while none of the top companies did.

Takeaways Iterable offered terrific takeaways when it came to the data at large, and I encourage everyone to download the report and read it. In terms of the differences between top companies and the fastest growing companies, researchers had this to say: We were surprised at the disparity in campaign usage rates between the fastest growing and top companies. The fastest growing companies appeared to emphasize winning the near-sale. Their faster turnaround times inside tighter windows of relevance made for more effective messaging. So which model should you and your customers follow? That’s an individual decision, but certainly the strategies are different. We do know that the fast growing companies are competing aggressively against their more established competitors, and clearly their strategies are different. They are nimble and laser-focused, often in ways that go against the prevailing wisdom (such as sending fewer cross-channel campaigns). Business model clearly matters in marketing mix, and growing vs. maintaining often require different approaches. This data should spark a lot of questions, especially at the C level. Should this research inform your marketing decisions? If so, how? My suggestion? Carve out a few hours for your executive team, bring in lunch, and talk about it! Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091748 ■

November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

10/21/19 11:47 AM

SOFTWARE & WORKFLOW

Prioritizing Online Tools

for Existing Customers

The dream of an online business that delivers profitable revenue from strangers is a good dream to have. It simply takes a lot of work to be successful at it. 38

WhatTheyThink - Printing News November 2019

SOFTWARE & WORKFLOW Article by Jennifer Matt

he dream of an online business that delivers profitable revenue from strangers is a good dream to have. It simply takes a lot of work to be successful at it. I have seen too many printers spend too much time focusing on the software and forgetting that internet traffic is not free or easy to get. We all have experience ordering online. We all have experience searching online. Yet most printers do not currently offer a way for their existing customers to do business with them online. And because most printers service customers they know (B2B, or business-to-business), they are not worrying too much about how to be found online (SEO, or search engine optimization). The opposite of the “most printers” model is a pure online print business whose primary target is strangers who “find” them online. They are expending a lot of time, effort, and money to be “found online”—what I like to call “earned traffic”—and/ or they are paying Google or social media channels advertising dollars for what I like to call “paid traffic.” Traditional printers who have sales teams out trying to get new business and only do business with companies they have an established relationship with are constantly telling me, “I want anyone (strangers) to be able to order from my website.” There is nothing inherently wrong with this. Every business owner is constantly looking for ways to grow their business. It’s only a problem because it requires a lot of changes in the way you do business in order to successfully execute on it. Buying online ordering software is the easiest part of the puzzle—but is should not be done until you tackle the harder, much more fundamental changes that would have to happen to your business. First and foremost, before you

spend any time, money, or effort on a project to allow strangers to buy from your print business online, answer one really important question: “How will strangers find your website online?” This sounds like an innocent question but it isn’t. There is no such thing as “if you build it, they will come.” Traffic on the Internet is expensive. What do I mean by that? It is expensive to get traffic online; you can either invest in strategy, content, and expertise to earn traffic through SEO or you can pay Google for search advertising. Internet traffic is not free; internet traffic is not cheap. So until you know how you’re

There is no such thing as “if you build it, they will come.” Traffic on the Internet is expensive. going to get traffic to a website that allows strangers to order from you, don’t spend one dollar building it. The other thing to think about if you’re a business-to-business printer today is, what will your current customers think if strangers can order from you online and they can’t? One of the most frustrating things about being an existing customer of any business is when you feel like the business is prioritizing new sales over your existing business. It’s a good way to have revenues go in the wrong direction. I always tell printers that it’s better to provide existing customers with online ordering before you go after strangers because your current customers should feel they are the most important.

Online ordering means software rather than customer services agents is submitting orders into your business. For many print businesses, this can be very disruptive. At first, it feels a little weird because orders can now come in at 3 a.m. when nobody is physically working at the plant. Getting your team used to online ordering should start with your existing customers. Many printers come back with, “I’ll create a whole new site/brand/ business division so that I can operate independently from my current business.” In many ways this is a good idea, as it keeps the direct-to-strangers business separate from the businessto-business operations. It just takes a lot of effort to run another business. And if you’re creating this business from scratch you will have exactly zero online traffic to start, so you’ll have to build it via online advertising dollars or a great SEO strategy. The primary point of this whole article is that an online strategy to get business from strangers does not begin with software. It begins with a marketing strategy and budget for driving traffic online. You can start working on that without buying any software. You can do research. You can seek advice. Then you need to decide what products you want to sell. Then you need to decide your online pricing. All of this can be done before software. When I explain even part of this process to printers, they usually come back with, “We don’t have time for all that.” Exactly. There is no “easy button” for creating a successful online print business. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091735 ■ Jennifer Matt Jennifer Matt writes, speaks, and consults with printers worldwide who realize their ability to leverage software is critical to their success in the Information Age.

November 2019 WhatTheyThink - Printing News

WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE

That’s a Wrap Wrapping “Kings” Turn Vehicle Graphics Into Art Article by Richard Romano

ehicle wrap competitions have become popular elements of many industry events, and are drawing more and more entrants and spectators. Wrapping materials manufacturers also host wrapping contests, and this fall, Avery Dennison has announced the winners of its “Wrap Like a King” (WLAK) competition. The breadth of entrants proves how popular wrapping has become: installers from 53 countries competed for thousands of dollars in prizes—and, as it turns out, great publicity and even new business. For the contest, vehicle graphics Richard Romano Richard Romano has been writing about the graphic communications industry for 20 years. He is an industry analyst and author or co-author of more than half a dozen books.

installers were invited to submit fullprint or color-change wrap projects. A stipulation of the contest was that the projects needed to feature the Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film portfolio. Wrap projects were photographed and/or recorded on video, submitted and evaluated by a panel of judges. The WLAK challenge comprises several rounds. In September, the Regional Wrap Kings included: ■■ N orth America East: The “Nebula Graffiti GR” project - designed by CORSA Auto Design and wrapped by Empire Vinyl Co. ■■ North America South: The “Creature from the Wrap Lagoon” project - completed by the MetroWrapz team ■■ N orth America Central: The “Deathstroke McLaren 650s” project - designed by Eric Gosselin of ECD and completed by PG Nola

British Columbia, Canada’s Sapphire Creative was a Regional Wrap King with its “Spiderghini” project. (Image courtesy Avery Dennison.)

■■ N orth America Midwest: The “P57” project - completed by IVS Wraps ■■ North America West: The “Willys - Chrome Punisher” project - completed by Incognito Wraps ■■ C anada: The “Spiderghini” project - completed by Sapphire Creative ■■ Europe North: The “Printed Chrome Caracachews Wrap” project - completed by Venom Wraps ■■ E urope South: The “Lamborghini Aventador” project - completed by M-Wrapping ■■ Europe Eastern, MENA: The “BMW M135i / Artist” project completed by WrapStyle s.r.o. ■■ Europe Central: The “Parrot in Flowers” project - completed by SIGNal Design GmbH

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WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE In early October, the Continental Wrap Kings were: ■■ North America South: The “Creature from the Wrap Lagoon” - MetroWrapz ■■ E urope: “BMW M135i/Artist” WrapStyle s.r.o. ■■ North Asia: “The Wrap Like a King 2019 - SLS AMG” Shanghai DC Town Auto Service Co., Ltd. ■■ A ustralia/New Zealand: “2014 Porsche 911 Turbo S TECHART GTstreet R” - Winguard Paint Protection Specialists ■■ S outh Africa: “Eric the Viking - Sharpline drift car wrap” Sharpline Signs and Graphics The Global Wrap King was announced in early November at the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas, a premier event for the auto industry.

Here Comes the Judge One of the judges for this year’s WLAK challenge was Justin Pate, founder of The Wrap Institute (https://wrapinstitute.com). The Wrap Institute provides a variety of educational resources for vehicle graphics installers, including a library of nearly 1,700 videos. Pate started wrapping vehicles as a freelance installer in New York City in 1996 and, in 2007, moved to Amsterdam. A year later, he launched his first instructional DVD and, in the early 2010s, starting holding wrapping workshops, ultimately founding The Wrap Institute in 2014 as a streaming video platform. It has grown substantially since. “I think The Wrap Institute has been a huge engine for creating volume and quality within the industry because we come out with a brand new video every day and we’re a neutral platform,” Pate said. “We’re always pushing the boundaries in terms of showing

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people what new techniques are out there and showing them better and faster or maybe different ways to approach something that is more profitable and time-efficient.” Pate started working with Avery Dennison in 2010 and created the company’s North American workshop and certification programs. He is often a judge of wrap contests, be they Avery Dennison’s or another’s. The judging criteria are a mix of technique and creativity. “In a [live] wrap contest, it’s much more up-close and personal,” he said. “I want to see how they clean the car and things like that. I’m looking to see if they’re cutting corners, if they’re rushing. I’m looking for how they problem-solve, because things always go wrong. Then obviously you want to see if they cut the car or if the alignment is good. Some people skip the basic stuff; if they want to go fast, they forget they have to install the graphic straight and straight’s more important than fast. Then some people get too caught up in cleaning and they don’t get to the wrapping part.”

The WLAK contest required a different approach since it was based on pictures and video. For Pate, creativity played a central role in his judging criteria. “What I’m looking for personally is someone who is pushing the bounds in terms of creativity,” he said. “If they just do one color, I’m just kind of like, ‘Well, it’s a good install, but it doesn’t do much in terms of pushing materials and design and stuff like that.’ So you’re looking for someone who can really come up with a creative concept, but then also execute in terms of installing.”

Galaxy Quest The North America East Regional Winner was a tag-team effort by CORSA Auto Design and Empire Vinyl Co. CORSA is an auto wrap design studio, co-founded by Adyan Rahmen about a year ago. CORSA handles the design and Empire Vinyl does the output. “Shops like Empire Vinyl or a client will come to us and give us an idea for a design,” Rahmen said, “and we basically bring it to life.

Sharpline Signs and Graphics, based in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, is a Continental Wrap King for its “Eric the Viking” wrap project. (Image courtesy Avery Dennison.)

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For more information, visit PrintingNews.com/10005229

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(Above) “Nebula Graffiti GR,” designed by CORSA Auto Design and printed and installed by Empire Vinyl, was a Regional Winner in the Avery Dennison Wrap Like a King challenge. (Image courtesy CORSA Auto Design.) (Right) Empire Vinyl President Calvin Ibanez used his own car for the wrapping challenge. (Image courtesy CORSA Auto Design.)

What we like to do is take a classic idea and either meld it with another idea and put our own spin on it, or just bring something fresh to the game. The possibilities are endless; there are so many different ways to design a car, but we always want to introduce something that’s never been seen before.” Rahmen got into wrapping via his lifelong love of cars. About two and half years ago, he had the opportunity to wrap a black BMW GT—which doesn’t have the best aesthetic reputation amongst car buffs—and wanted to “take it and make it something unique,” he said. “I mocked something up and I took it to the shop I was working with and brought it to life. People absolutely loved it. They just were shocked at how a GT could completely change its appearance from something rather ugly into something that actually won an award. Some friends of mine said I needed to start designing for other

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cars and one buddy of mine wanted me to design his I8. So I took that on as a challenge and people loved it. Soon after, CORSA was formed.” It’s a two person team at the moment—Rahmen and his mother, who has a long background in art. Rahmen himself is actually still in school studying statistics and quantitative modeling which, he says “is as far away as you can get from graphic design.” But, he added, “cars and art are things I’ve always been interested in since I was young and at first it started as a hobby, but now it’s become an actual business.” CORSA works very closely with

Deer Park, N.Y.’s Empire Vinyl, a relationship that began with a chance meeting between Rahmen and Calvin Ibanez, Empire’s founder and president, at a trade show. Ibanez got into wrapping when he had his own car—a 2007 Dodge Charger— wrapped and was less than thrilled with the results. “I got to thinking that maybe I could try and do this,” Ibanez said. “So I ended up ordering a roll of wrap to wrap the car myself to see if I could do it.” The result of the experiment was encouraging enough to lead Ibanez to drop out of school and concentrate on developing his wrapping business. “I haven’t regretted it since,” he said. With the support of his friends, he began wrapping their cars to build up a portfolio and an expertise. “At that point, it was just color changes,” he said. “It wasn’t anything too crazy. Then about a year or two ago, we started getting more into unique looks.” That led to the project for the WLAK challenge. “One day, I stopped by a shop to discuss some other cars and Calvin saw some projects we were working on,” Rahmen said. “He said, ‘Wow, these things are really wild. I think it’s time to go a little wild with our car.’ And we knew about Wrap Like a King and we said this is a perfect reason to do something really ‘wow.’” The hard part was coming up with a compelling theme. “Something that I thought was very cool is just space,” he said. “When you see these amazing photos that NASA has taken of space—galaxies and all of these different nebulas—it’s really artwork itself, but it’s real-life.” But it needed something else. “Both of us are within a reasonable distance of New York City, and so we see all these examples of modern art: graffiti. And I thought those are

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WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE two very cool themes, and nobody has ever put them together. So when I talked to Calvin about it, he loved the idea.” And thus was born “Nebula Graffiti GR.”

Creature Comfort It takes a lot of effort and resources to enter a wrapping contest. Obviously, installers see value in participating, but does it help these businesses get more work? “It does lend itself to new business,” said Carlos Alverio, general manager of Miami’s MetroWrapz. “Having it all on social media really helps showcase what companies can do and what their capabilities are.” MetroWrapz won the North America Continental round of the WLAK challenge with its “Creature from the Wrap Lagoon” project. In 2010, MetroWrapz as a business entity was spun out of Metro Signs (founded 1988); before that, it was the wrapping department of Metro Signs. “It wasn’t the caliber that it is now back when we started,” Alverio said. “We were doing a lot of commercial wraps, not a lot of color change. It was just myself wrapping, and we slowly started to build the team from there.” Like a lot of vehicle wrappers, Alverio got into wrapping by

CORSA Auto Design founder Adyan Rahmen has been in love with cars since he was a small child. (Image courtesy CORSA Auto Design.)

accident—28 years ago. “It started as summer work,” he said. “It was a van for a local rapper. I was essentially just given a vehicle and two days to get it done. Those were the only instructions. I had never wrapped before in my life and it took me the full two days because

I didn’t know what I was doing. But I figured it out.” He subsequently went through various certification programs, including those offered by Avery Dennison, 3M and Orafol, among others, to further expand his knowledge base. For the past five years, MetroWrapz has hosted a class conducted by Justin Pate. “It’s always good to get a refresher course when he comes through,” Alverio said. “It’s been an experience. It’s fun, but there is a lot more training that can be acquired.” MetroWrapz is looking to repeat its success—they won last year’s Wrap Like a King contest—and the M.O. for this year’s project was to exceed what they had done. This led to “The Creature from the Wrap Lagoon.” Vehicle graphics have evolved from simple commercial graphics, to basic color changes, to “rolling artwork.” (Image courtesy CORSA Auto Design.)

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WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE “The owner of the company has always been a fan of ‘The Creature from the Black Lagoon,’” Alverio said. “He wanted to do something to challenge us, so he came up with this concept, and we talked about it early on and we had a plan in place.” At almost the last minute, with the submission deadline looming, they decided to change the base material they were going to use. “We switched to chrome knowing how difficult that’s going to be because it’s a bigger challenge as chrome is a lot more difficult to install.” The creature’s scales were going to be embossed, and chrome shows off the 3D effect and “pops” better than other materials. The actual car that was used for the contest was supplied by a customer and friend of the company. “He saw the car that we did last year, and said ‘If you guys want to do anything, feel free, you have access to my car,’” Alverio said. “And we took him up on it.” The “creature” theme even extended to other parts of the car. “Naturally the face is on the front of the car, so underneath the hood would be the brain,” Averio said. “On the top, which is the body, is where the engine is, which is what’s running this whole thing, we wrapped the entire engine bay with an image of a heart. And then, the door jambs and all the interior pieces in the car, we wrapped as muscle fiber. We had everything thought out.”

Vehicle Graphics Keep Driving Forward “When I first started wrapping in 1996, it was a job for Time Warner and it was on 3M’s electrostatic printer and that printer cost, I think, close to $750,000,” Pate said. “I’m at Mutoh right now teaching a workshop and a comparable printer

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MetroWrapz’s Creature from the Black Lagoon-inspired wrap takes the theme even into the interior and under the hood. (Image courtesy Avery Dennison.)

to that is around $14,000. Technology has changed and printers have come down dramatically in price, which has made wraps more affordable to the masses. And the printer quality is awesome today.” Wrapping has evolved from commercial fleet graphics, to color changes, to now highly creative automotive imagery. The technology has given wrap designers seemingly unlimited freedom to create virtually any kind of image. “It’s evolved a lot over the past four or five years to where you see a lot of different shops connecting with designers like CORSA to do these kinds of standout cars, and not just wrapping a car to change it from red to black,” Rahmen said. “Artists like myself now look at cars as canvases, where they’re like rolling artwork. They’re something like Calvin’s Mustang where it’s a car that no matter where it goes, whether you’re a car person or not, it’s going to blow your mind because it’s combining a nebula within kind of a galaxy artwork, and then mixing that together with New York City street art. People just love the fact that you can take these cars and make

them truly one-of-a-kind with what essentially is a big sticker.” And car dealerships are starting to recognize the added value of vehicle graphics. “Dealerships are now offering graphics packages,” Alverio said. MetroWrapz works with dealerships that offer a graphics package as part of a new car purchase. “They’ll send it to us, we’ll wrap it, and we’ll bring it back to them.” There is no end of new developments, new materials, new printers and new techniques that appear seemingly daily. Keeping up with it all can be a challenge—but the wrap industry is very supportive. “The beautiful thing about the wrap world is everybody’s in it to kind of help each other,” Rahmen said. “It is a competitive industry, but it’s a friendly competitive industry. What I really appreciate about the wrap industry is that everybody’s here to help each other and help each other grow. “At the end of the day, it’s another form of art and we all just enjoy seeing this art come to life.” Find article here PrintingNews. com/21092072 ■

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Know the Signs:

A Non-Print Signage Primer Print businesses have been expanding into signage by leaps and bounds—but print signage is only the tip of the iceberg.

Article by Richard Romano

“

Signs, signs, everywhere there’s signs,” sang the Five Man Electrical Band in their 1971 hit single “Signs” (perhaps made more famous by the band Tesla’s 1990 cover)—and indeed it’s hard to venture very far without encountering a sign of some kind. As we have written about many times, print businesses have been adding wide-format and display graphics as well as signage to their product and service offerings. When it comes to signage, a lot of traditional print businesses have focused on printrelated signage—and understandably so. Not only is ink on a substrate something easily understandable to any print business (heck, it is the print business), but today’s wideformat equipment can print virtually anything, including many kinds of signage.

Signage has a long history—it dates from the earliest human civilizations—and for most of that history, print was a very small portion of it. As a result, to truly get into signage may require being at the very least conversant in a wide variety of manufacturing and construction techniques, materials and even new technologies, in addition to some kind of ink on some kind of substrate. If a small business is looking for a “sign,” what they may—indeed, what they probably— have in mind is not anything printed, but something constructed. Let’s look at some common forms of non-print-related signage.

Changing Channels Just as in the early days of print, when text was created by assembling individual metal letters into words, sentences, paragraphs and pages, a

lot of signage today still comprises individual letters lined up and attached to a display surface, such as the front of a building. These are called “channel letters,” and are individual metal or plastic letters that are assembled to form exterior signage. Like any text, they can be set in standard typefaces as well as custom brand faces and logos. For many businesses, channel letters are an essential component of branding, and if you take a trip to your local shopping center or “valley of malls,” you will see no shortage of creative uses of channel letters. Channel letter signs can be illuminated, and channel letters are starting to overlap with other kinds of illuminated lettering, with neon and LED lettering often classified as channel letters. Channel letters are custom manufactured out of metal like aluminum (which doesn’t rust

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and is reasonably lightweight) with lighting assemblies added as needed. ImageFirst is a wholesale exterior sign manufacturer that specializes in all kinds of outdoor signage, selling to retail sign companies across the country. Indeed, ImageFirst has been working with FASTSIGNS to help franchises expand their offerings beyond printed signage. ImageFirst offers a full range of sign manufacturing services, but over time has carved out specific niches. “There’s not a lot that we don’t do or delve into,” said David Watts, ImageFirst’s plant/production manager. “As of the last few years, we’ve gotten into custom architectural signage. You see all these nice buildings going up and they want signs to match their buildings or signs that fit in with the architecture of the building. That’s kind of where we’ve grown our niche.” As a wholesale sign manufacturer, ImageFirst doesn’t work directly with the architect or builder, but rather with the sign company that was contracted by the party involved in constructing the building. ImageFirst has a wide variety of online resources, including “The Ultimate Guide to Channel Letters.” There are different mounting techniques for channel letters. For a “clean” look, they can be directly attached to the intended façade using fasteners. Any electrical that is required for illumination is run

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through the wall to which the letters are attached. An alternative is a “raceway,” which is a metal container or frame. The letters are mounted to the front of the raceway, and then the back of the raceway is mounted on the edifice itself. The raceway often needs to be weatherproof since it will

house the electrical components. The advantage of using a raceway rather than direct mounting is that it reduces the number of “penetrations” into the edifice. This is especially important in a location like a retail plaza or mall where there may be a regular turnover of tenants—you don’t have to keep

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WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE Monument signs can also involve carpentry and hand painting, as well as other more artisanal techniques.

Projecting Projects

drilling into the wall or monument each time a new tenant wants their own channel letters installed. Channel letters can be illuminated. They can be front lit (lamps within the letters themselves shine outward), back lit or “halo lit” (the letters are not flush with the edifice and light shines from behind, creating a kind of “reverse” effect)—or illuminated 48

using a combination of lighting types.

Monumental Signage A term you’ll hear in signage conversations is “monument.” A monument, monument sign or pylon is simply a freestanding exterior sign. It is often illuminated and a monument can include channel letters.

A projecting sign is a sign that is an integrated architectural element of a building. It is connected to the exterior of a structure and projects outward. Projecting signs thus have the same look and feel as the building itself since it is actually part of edifice. There are some special engineering issues associated with projecting signs, which will be familiar to anyone who has ever installed outdoor banners or other printed signage. “[Projecting signs] can be a little bit harder because of the wind load,” said Kelly Sheldon O’Byrne, product manager–interior signage for ImageFirst. “There’s a lot more surface area and sail area, so they have to be better constructed and engineered.” While wholesalers like ImageFirst don’t work directly with architects and building contractors, they’ll often be consulted about some of the particulars. “Occasionally I’ll do designs based on architectural renderings,” said Nick Nelson, project manager and designer for ImageFirst. “Basically, they have an architect’s drawing of what they want the sign to look like, and I’ll design it based off what we’ve quoted, and then also specify fabrication techniques and lighting techniques. A lot of architectural drawings don’t take into consideration access to the electrical or the internal structure. So that’s kind of the part we play in that is taking a design they have and making it functional.”

New Horizons As has been the case with printbased wide-format and display

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WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE and an iron flake solution. An acid is applied to begin a chemical reaction that “rusts” the surface. How long this rusting process is allowed to take place (a few hours vs. overnight) determines how rusty the panel becomes. The rusting process is halted using another coating. Cor-ten is a lighter and more flexible material than steel itself. “By using aluminum, we can rout it, bend it and illuminate it,” O’Byrne said. “It’s also a little easier to work with. It’s a really cool product.” Other kinds of faux materials such as faux masonry are also eyecatching options for monument

signs, sign bases or accents. ImageFirst offers a variety called InStone which is applied over an aluminum frame and is available in several different textures.

Solar Systems For sign installers who don’t want to muck about with electrical connections, solar panels can be attached to a sign to provide the power for its illumination. It’s not just a good use of renewable energy, but can be more convenient. “It helps when you have a sign that is maybe 100 or 200 feet away from

graphics, getting customers up to speed on what viable options are is one of the biggest challenges, and with signage, getting customers to think beyond traditional channel letters or plain vanilla signage takes a little bit of hand-holding. “It’s getting them to broaden their horizon past just letters on a wall to more of an architectural look,” O’Byrne said. Some new-ish materials for exterior signage include:

Flex Face Flex Face is a translucent vinyl material that is stretched over a frame and can then be backlit. It can be printed or cut into the desired shape. “It’s especially great for big designs that are going high up because of the wind load,” O’Byrne said. “It’s a lighter product so it manages better.”

Cor-Ten Cor-ten is a material that replicates the look of weathered steel. It’s an aluminum panel treated with a primer

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the building and they don’t want to dig a trench to get electricity out to the sign,” Nelson said.

Code Comfort One vitally important consideration when designing and planning exterior signage is to be aware of local sign codes, regulations and restrictions in the location in which the sign will be installed. (They can vary from municipality to municipality.) Ultimately, the due diligence related to sign codes and the related permits is the responsibility of the sign’s enduse customer, but sign shops can help their customers out by either being up to speed on the local laws themselves, or being able to provide the customer with sign code resources. (The International Sign Association is a wonderful resource for gleaning information in local sign 50

codes.) It’s the sign equivalent of “call before you dig.”

Go For It All of this may seem a little daunting to a small print business that might produce wide-format or display graphics: suddenly start fabricating letters and erecting projecting signs or monuments? Isn’t that a bit like the Monty Python sketch about the accountant who wants to become a lion tamer? Well, five or so years ago, wide-format printing seemed pretty daunting to the print business that only ever did direct mail or transactional work. And that’s why partnering with a company like ImageFirst—rather than trying to do it yourself, at least at first—can help tap into these product areas, because they can be worth it. “We try to stress to companies who maybe are hesitant to take on that large monument sign or large

building ID that you can sell 300 interior signs for, let’s say, $20,000, or you can sell one large exterior monument for that price—or even more,” Nelson said. “So you get a lot of bang for your buck on the exterior monument signs, too.” “I think sometimes they’re scared because they haven’t done it before,” O’Byrne saod. “But when you have good partners like ImageFirst, you can talk it through and get a better understanding of what you need and the smart questions to ask your clients.” “There are a lot of things to look into, and we try to help them through all the processes of that exterior signage, including the best way to install it,” Watts said. “So we try to help them and walk them through the process from the beginning until they get seasoned and they’re up to speed.” Find article here PrintingNews.com/21092350 ■

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NEW PRODUCTS SAi Announces Online Personalized Training Program

▲ Panthera Debuts Revolutionary 8-Color Digital Dye Sublimation Printer The Mosaica Group, a national distributor supporting dye sublimation and wide format print processes with equipment, consumables and services, is exhibiting at PRINTING United in Dallas, TX. The Mosaica Group exhibited at PRINTING United with Kaspar Papir to showcase their portfolio of papers, including their latest addition – sunpaper, a UV-protected transfer paper. Demonstrations were provided on the revolutionary Panthera S4-3.2m digital dye sublimation printer that now offers 8-color ink configuration. The Panthera S4 is available in both 1.8m and 3.2m widths in 2-ink configurations — 2 x CMYK and its new SWISSJet D&T-K 8-color ink set photo quality configuration.

www.printingnews.com/21090637

SA International (SAi), the leading provider of software solutions for the signmaking, digital printing and CNC machining industries, has announced details of its upcoming One-On-One Training program SA International has announced details of its upcoming One-On-One Training program, which is now available to book. Complementing the company’s existing educational initiatives, the new online learning program is designed to equip customers with specific skills and knowledge to maximize their use of SAi software and enhance their sign and large format printing operations. Training sessions are available to both Flexi and EnRoute customers in the United States and Canada. Structured around a one-to-one format, SAi’s latest training program will enable customers to directly receive insightful, bespoke advice from software specialists, and put their own questions to the experts.

www.printingnews.com/21092204 Neenah Packaging Introduces New Hemp Fiber Papers Neenah Packaging once again meets market demands and addresses market trends with the introduction of new hemp fiber papers, a new color, and new finishes into its recently expanded line of Neenah Folding Board papers. Neenah Packaging once again meets market demands and addresses market trends with the introduction of new hemp fiber papers, a new color, and new finishes into its recently expanded line of Neenah Folding Board papers. According to a 2019 Industry Research study, the global CBD (Cannabidiol) market is expected to grow at a CAGR of roughly 32% over the next five years. These new Hemp Board papers are available in a Vellum finish, in three of Neenah Folding Board’s most popular shades:

www.printingnews.com/21092002

Roland DG Announces First IU-1000F High-Speed Large-Format UV-LED Flatbed Printer with Breakthrough Performance Roland DG Corporation, a leading manufacturer of wide-format inkjet printers and printer/cutters worldwide, today announced the expansion of its already extensive UV-LED print portfolio with a new large-format UVLED flatbed printer, the IU-1000F. Roland DG Corporation announced the expansion of its already extensive UV-LED print portfolio with a new largeformat UV-LED flatbed printer, the IU-1000F. Capable of printing on a wide range of substrates and objects at up to 116 sqm per hour1, the IU-1000F is designed to meet the diverse needs of busy print service providers and commercial printers, with unsurpassed performance. In addition to high-adhesion, high-density CMYK UV inks, this highly versatile large format device supports White, Gloss and Primer inks to create a wide variety of stunning applications, from impressive and highly-profitable signs, displays, backlits and exhibition graphics to custom-designed interior décor applications such as canvas wall panels and furniture.

www.printingnews.com/21091847

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The RMX Network: United They Grow

This affiliation of like-minded companies grows together. Article by Richard Romano

he RMX Network is an alliance of over 100 independent North American wide-format print service providers. It’s not a franchise, but rather an affiliation of like-minded companies that band together to support each other and help solve problems. Through conferences, workshops, roundtables and online communities, RMX Partner company owners, production managers and others can exchange ideas, get ongoing consultation and develop processes to make their businesses run better and more profitably. It’s a unique business model. We spoke with President Rick Bosworth to learn more. Printing News: How did you start with the company? What is your background? Rick Bosworth: I started in the reprographics business over 30 years ago. I was a minority owner in a print company that we grew significantly from 1979 until 2003. I have been involved with The RMX Network since 1984, and in 2003 I sold my interest in the print company and became president of The RMX Network. It’s been a great experience for the last 16 years. PN: Tell us about The RMX Network. RB: The RMX Network is represented in over 100 markets in North America. We serve the commercial print markets in the wide-format digital segment. We have a unique structure in this 52

industry. Companies come together in order to be able to work as one in areas of technology, services, new markets and new opportunities. We try as best we can to leverage each other’s information in a very closed environment so that information stays confidential. People can drill down into areas that they would normally not, because of the competitive environment that we all live in. Within RMX, they work together as a group or a network in order to be able to improve their top line, their bottom line and everything in between. PN: So these companies are independently branded. That is, it’s not like a like a franchise where they would all have basically the same name or brand. RB: Yes. It would be what I consider to be kind of an affiliation. These are all independently owned companies; we have no interest whatsoever financially in them. They are part of the network and they contribute to the network as they see fit and as they have the opportunity. We find it to be incredibly valuable for the company to leverage each other’s knowledge. It’s a unique approach, but it’s worked very well since 1984, and we’ve seen significant growth all over North America. PN: What do you consider the greatest advantage of The RMX Network for its partners? RB: Time and again, owners and executives tell us that the industry is changing so fast they don’t

Rick Bosworth

know what they would do without the support and advice of other executives in The RMX Network. They really do take part in the online communities to solve problems, get answers and learn all aspects of the business. Let me give you an example. Recently, several partner companies, after lots of independent discussion, implemented the same business management system and right now they’re starting to compare notes on our communities so others can learn from their experience. Eventually, partner companies will be moving their businesses forward with this comparative data. Another asset is the conferences and workshops where they visit each other’s facilities to learn more about technology, new ways to do business and get candid feedback on the latest in wide-format printing and finishing equipment. Another real advantage of our network is that we can handle jobs in different places. If there’s

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WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE a company based in Chicago that needs work done in eight different cities they can work through our network companies to fulfill that on a local basis. So things like printing and installation can be done in Houston for a job that was initiated in Chicago. PN: What kinds of print products/ applications have you and your partner companies seen growing? RB: Our Partner companies are diversifying now more than ever before. Sophisticated wall coverings, managed services, indoor and outdoor displays, building wraps— you name it, it’s all within their scope of business. There really are no limits to what these digital PSPs can do. PN: Which products/applications are becoming less in demand or more commoditized? RB: The processes and technologies of the construction industry have changed. Traditional reprographics, straight plans and specs are now more price-sensitive than ever before. Most of our partner companies started in the AEC (architecture, engineering and construction) area. With the support of other companies, they’ve learned to address new markets in the wideformat digital arena and have gone into a number of different verticals that have proven to be extremely valuable. PN: It sounds like with that background they’d be wellpositioned to produce experiential or environmental graphics, which is a fast-growing wide-format application, sort of where display graphics meets décor. RB: Partner companies work with major corporations throughout North America that have hundreds of locations. They do digital décor as a branding tool for universities, hospitals and commercial environments. Everything from

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billboards to wall graphics, to windows, to floors, to directional way-signage—just about any wideformat area. About seven or eight years ago, RMX Network developed, along with HP, a program that allowed our partner companies to address the commercial market and an architectural market so that they can provide American Institute of Architects continuing education credits. Our partners put forth a program that allows us to promote digital decor as a moneymaker. So interior designers and architects can now look at RMX companies and they can go to them to take their design and they can implement that from file management, through print, through installation. PN: A number of sign and wideformat shops are also starting to add smaller-format products like direct mail or transactional work so they can offer everything to a customer. Are you finding any of your partners moving into that kind of work? RB: Absolutely, and some have been in transactional services for years. We have any number of partner companies that are looking at what we call narrow-format print. They do fulfillment and distribution of documents and serve customers for managed print facilities where they supply equipment and personnel. Most of those are narrowformat applications and some are also wide-format. So it’s a growing area where end users want one resource that can professionally handle their applications, whether it’s narrow- or wide-format technologies. PN: As we speak, we are on the eve of PRINTING United, a show that is emblematic of the way that so many different kinds of print are starting to become viable markets within the printing industry. As a result, you’ve used the term

“disenfranchised” in the past; do you think printing companies are feeling disenfranchised within the industry? RB: I think it would be easy to feel marginalized these days. The convergence of different types of printing into one industry makes for a huge playing field that can be overwhelming. So anything that can bring companies together to learn and grow from each other in a noncompetitive environment is a win/ win for everyone. This is how our partner companies make sure they don’t feel disenfranchised—they are part of something bigger that benefits everyone. And that’s the leading advantage to being a partner company within The RMX Network. PN: What’s the best advice you would give printers and others in this industry? RB: Learn everything you can about what’s next in this business and be willing to change. It moves so fast—from customers wanting new applications to technology making processes better and manufacturers creating improved, robust equipment. The wide-format color business is fast and getting faster. PN: And that’s where the advantages of The RMX Network come in.... RB: The strength of The RMX Network is represented by its partner companies. RMX is really nothing on its own; it’s a compilation of the leading print service providers in the wide-format industry, and has some of the best, most knowledgeable, most experienced people in all of North America. And it continues to grow just based on the fact that these leading companies are willing to share with each other. Because of that, these companies are more profitable, and they are growing at a faster rate. We’re excited about where we’re going to go. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091461 ■

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The Court is in Session

The latest sign code court decision may have serious implications for the billboard and sign industry. Article by Richard Romano

he Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s decision in the case of Thomas v. Bright that the government cannot distinguish between onpremise and off-premise signage because it is an unconstitutional content-based distinction. We spoke to David Hickey, VP of advocacy, for the International Sign Association (ISA) about the decision and some of the potential ramifications. Back in January, we looked at some of the recent ramifications of the Reed v. Town of Gilbert Supreme Court decision, in which the Court ruled that “placing limits on temporary directional signs that were more stringent than these other types of temporary signs was a content-based regulation of speech—a violation of the First Amendment.” That 2015 SCOTUS decision has forced many municipalities to review their sign codes—the regulations that impact the type, placement and often design of signage—and has opened up a variety of cans of worms. Now, another court decision—this time from a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and not SCOTUS (yet, perhaps)—has further muddied the waters of sign regulation. In Thomas v. Bright, a case that originated in Tennessee, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the ruling of the federal district court that the government cannot distinguish between onpremise and off-premise signage because it is an unconstitutional content-based distinction. The 54

decision, Hickey said, “could possibly change the way that signs are regulated and the way that the sign industry does business.” So...some serious implications. Let’s back up and have a look at the case, which originated as Thomas. v. Schroer. William H. Thomas, Jr., is a Tennessee billboard owner. His fight with the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) began in 2006, when he asked for and was denied permits for billboards advertising local businesses. Crucially for this case, those businesses being advertised—such as Crossroads Ford—were not located on the same property as the billboards. Thomas owned the property the billboards were on. To use the legal parlance, they were “off-premises” billboards or signage. An “on-premises” sign would be one that was located on the same property as the business being advertised. Finally, Thomas stopped erecting billboards with commercial messages and simply put up messages with benign but non-commercial messages such as “Support the Troops,” “Happy Thanksgiving” or encouragement for U.S. Olympic athletes. Still denied permits, he kept repeatedly receiving citations and fines from the state. Finally, after the state physically tore down one of his billboards, he decided to sue. The state claimed that the reasons for its sign codes concerned “traffic safety” and “aesthetics”—the two main justifications for most sign codes.

The important wrinkle to this case was that the state would have had no problem with Thomas’s signage had it been on-premises. If Crossroads Ford had had the sign on their own property and used it to promote its own services, there would have been no issue. But in this case, the state had to evaluate the content of the sign to determine whether or not it should be regulated—and thus fell afoul of the First Amendment. A federal judge in Memphis ruled in Thomas’s favor, reflecting an interpretation based on Reed v. Town of Gilbert. The state subsequently appealed the case to the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, which affirmed the lower court’s ruling: if a community’s sign code tries to distinguish between on- and offpremise signs—at least to the extent that they did in Tennessee—then those codes are content-based and therefore unconstitutional. All well and good, right? Well, there are some subtle nuances to the case that could have more serious implications for signage manufacturers down the road. “We’ve been watching this court case for a long time, including back in 2017 when it was in the lower court in Tennessee,” Hickey said. “What drew our attention to it was that that was the first time that a federal court had found the on-/ off-premise distinction to be contentbased and therefore unconstitutional under the 2015 Reed v. Town of Gilbert case. Prior to the Tennessee case, the vast majority of state and federal court cases after Reed that

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WIDE-FORMAT & SIGNAGE brought this question up—and this question is always brought up by billboard operators—found that the distinction was content-neutral. So when this one other lower federal court found that it was content-based, that really caught our attention.” Remember how Thomas fell afoul of the TDOT with his benign noncommercial billboard messages about supporting the troops and Olympic athletes? “That was the sign situation that actually made it to the court, because it was an off-premise sign with noncommercial speech,” Hickey said, “and if it’s an off-premise sign with noncommercial speech, then it can’t be treated differently than an on-premise sign with a commercial message.” However, he added, “apparently, the Sixth Circuit Court feels that [onvs. off-premise signage] is a contentbased distinction because you have to look at the sign to know if it’s on- or off-premise. It’s a really sort of cosmic legal argument—if you have to read the message on the sign to know what kind of sign it is, then it’s a content-based regulation.” So basically the Sixth Circuit Court found that Tennessee’s sign code was a content-based regulation, and when a regulation is deemed to be contentbased, it needs to undergo a court test using “strict scrutiny.” Especially in the case of non-commercial speech, the state has to prove that their regulation furthers “compelling state interest”—in this case, aesthetics and public safety. “But the court said that aesthetics is not a compelling state interest, at least not when it’s limiting noncommercial speech,” Hickey said. As for public safety, the argument was made that distracted drivers are a compelling interest, but the Court deemed that Tennessee did not tailor the regulations narrowly enough to further that interest.

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“If they think that drivers might be distracted while reading noncommercial signs, why wouldn’t that be the same for commercial signs?” Hickey said. Hickey has heard strict scrutiny described as akin to receiving a stomach wound during the Civil War. “You’re a goner if you get it,” he said. Ergo, the Court struck down the Tennessee DOT sign permitting scheme. What then are the immediate implications of this decision? In terms of day-to-day sign design and production, not much. But it has the potential to raise serious issues down the road. “Depending where this case or this issue moves in the federal court system, we could see much more interesting developments,” Hickey said. And anticipating those developments is what the ISA is trying to wrap their heads around right now. “We need to figure out how it’s possibly going to affect sign codes and how it’s going to affect the sign industry.” Hickey initially sees a couple of basic issues arising from the Thomas decision and, by extension, the Reed decision. “If this case keeps getting appealed and affirmed, what does it mean for all 50 state DOT laws? I shudder to think about it. What does it mean for the Federal Highway Beautification Act, because on-premise signs are exempted from most of those laws requiring permits along interstate highways, which is how billboards are affected by the state DOTs. In theory, what if those laws are all struck down? Will off-premise signs within 660 feet of an interstate all have to get permits now?” Then there’s the issue of third-party advertising. “In the case of digital signs, the sign company sells a digital sign to

an end user and the end user can only use it for messages for their business, right?” Hickey said. “If they want to advertise something else a mile down the road and derive revenue from that, then in some cases that would be considered a billboard. Suppose you’re taking this to its logical conclusion: an on-premise digital sign could contain off-premise advertising. How is it going to affect the billboard industry?” The real test, though, will be where the case goes from here. If Tennessee appeals the case, then it would go to the Supreme Court for possible acceptance. However, there are two other circuit courts that have also ruled on the on-/off-premise distinction and, in contrast to Thomas, found it to be content-neutral. “Then you would in theory have a split between two circuit courts,” Hickey said, “and when that happens, the Supreme Court could pick up the case to resolve that split.” As for “possibly changing the way that signs are regulated and the way that the sign industry does business,” Hickey admits that’s a worst-case scenario. “Right now, the way I read this case is that it’s very narrowly tailored pertaining only to off-premise signs with non-commercial messages,” he said. “So at this point today it doesn’t really affect the vast number of our members’ products which are commercial on-premise signs—but it’s definitely opened the possibility to a more aggressive application of the Sixth Circuit’s reasoning and opinion.” ISA will be keeping close tabs on how sign codes change in the wake of both Thomas and Reed, and signmakers and other graphics producers are welcome to contact the ISA if they have any questions or concerns. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091717 ■

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TEXTILES & APPAREL

Acabada Launches

CBD-Infused Activewear

There’s been a lot of publicity of late about cannabidiol (CBD) and its health benefits. Although CBD can be derived from the marijuana, or cannabis, plant, it is not psychoactive—that is reserved for the THC component of the plant. Article by Cary Sherburne

here’s been a lot of publicity of late about cannabidiol (CBD) and its health benefits. Although CBD can be derived from the marijuana, or cannabis, plant, it is not psychoactive—that is reserved for the THC component of the plant. 56

Another source of CBD is commercial hemp, where CBD is extracted from the flower of the plant. While the U.S. FDA has reservations about CBD, I have personally been using it for a couple years to prevent arthritis, and it’s also a good substitute for cortisone to stop itching from insect

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TEXTILES & APPAREL bites. I’m sure there are other benefits as well. And although it may turn out that it has side effects—seems like almost everything does!—I’d rather bet on this natural product than the prednisone I was using before. So that’s why I was interested to see a news report about Acabada’s CBDinfused activewear. Interesting fact: Take out all the As in the company name and voila! You have CBD! I reached out to co-founder and CEO Seth Baum to learn more about their product, and here’s what he told me: WhatTheyThink: First, tell us a little bit about the company. Seth Baum: Launched in 2019, Acabada ProActiveWear is the world’s first and only CBD-infused activewear brand, committed to creating innovative, luxury apparel for the proactive woman. Designed in New York and made in Portugal, Acabada infuses luxe fabrics with the highest quality, organic CBD, to ensure that

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…we recognized the natural connection between the reported positive effects that CBD has on pain and inflammation within the fitness and overall personal wellness categories.

women will look, feel. and perform at their best. WTT: What was the driver behind selecting CBD? SB: With the fast-growing popularity and increased public awareness of CBD, we recognized the natural connection between the reported positive effects that CBD has on pain and inflammation within the fitness and overall personal wellness categories. In addition to the life-changing testimonials being told about the benefits of CBD, top athletes and global sporting organizations are increasingly embracing CBD and have made it a part of their training and recovery programs. WTT: Are there any specific test results you have had? SB: The microencapsulation process has been around for several years, successfully infusing ingredients such as aloe vera and Continue on page 63

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TEXTILES & APPAREL

Ending the Waste Digital technologies offer the textiles industry a sustainable future. Article by Debbie McKeegan

s both textile consumers, and as professional manufacturers working within the printing Industry, the impact of climate change affects us all. Whether we are aware of them or not, each and every one of the incremental actions we all take daily, be they positive or negative, have a sustainable consequence and will therefore impact every aspect of our existence, both professional and private. If we are to encourage sustainable practices, the industry must collaborate to deliver a sustainable future. Let look at the facts: Historically the textiles industry has been the second biggest polluter of our environment, only surpassed by the petroleum Industry. That seems a striking statement; but to understand why, we have to look at the size of the textiles industry and the incredibly complicated supply chain that supports its ecosystem. According to the Ellen Macarthur Debbie McKeegan Debbie McKeegan is the CEO of TexIntel. As a multi-disciplinary creative and renowned digital print pioneer, she holds over 25 years’ experience within the Textile manufacturing industry.

Image courtesy of Texintel and Mimaki

Foundation, textile production produces 1.2 billion tons of greenhouse gas every year. The United Nations estimates that 10 percent of total global emissions come from the fashion industry alone, and the Industry is responsible for over 20% of the wastewater emissions. But, the impact of the textiles and clothing Industry on the environment goes beyond emissions. Textile chemical effluent damages the water table and waterways, toxic air pollutants ruin air quality, and in the vast manufacturing communities of the East, particularly in China, the intensive energy requirements for textile processing retains the need for coal-fired power stations. Yet, as this gloomy picture is painted, there are still many reasons to be optimistic. The industry is switching to sustainable sources at a rapid pace. As consumer knowledge about climate change and the detrimental effects of the products they purchase has grown, so has the demand for sustainably sourced alternatives.

Consumers are driving demand, they expect viable product options and they seek an informed choice, which has led to a growing demand for supply chain transparency. As a result of this growing demand, the industry has a new requirement from the buying teams and global super brands for a sustainable, transparent supply. As history has proven over and over again, commerce is driven by supply and demand, and in this instance the results will be positive. The carbon footprint of every supply chain, regardless of product or Industry, is now under scrutiny. As the super brands – H&M, Inditex, Gucci, Adidas etc. – pledge “Carbon Neutrality” as a fundamental part of their mission statements, there is a new measure of cost for the industry; the cost of carbon emissions has now become a factored component of selling price. For the textile manufacturer, the fabrics we utilize must therefore increasingly be of a certified origin. In an industry that has not previously been historically

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Image courtesy of Texintel and Mimaki

regulated, we also see a growing demand for voluntary certification. The pathway to retail must be environmentally efficient. In every sector of the supply chain we are witnessing systemic change. However, in an industry as vast and historic as the textile sector, adoption takes time and the industry cannot simply switch to sustainable practices overnight. Technology has to develop alongside a seismic demand for the innovations capable of delivering the industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s consumables. As an industry, we consume billions of tons of fiber, inks and chemistry (to name just a few essentials) and use trillions of liters of water as well as a vast use of energy in our processes. To manufacture sustainably in the intense volumes and the speed required will take billions of dollars of investment in renewable energy, recycling, waste management and refinement. Without question, the textiles industry is investing in the necessary technology to define a new Industrial era of sustainable manufacturing. Leading the way to a cleaner and more sustainable environment is the growth and development of the Digital Textile Printing industry.

TEXTILES & APPAREL

While still a small proportion of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total print space at around 5%, the sector is predicted to grow at an astonishing rate, with a CAGR of 17.5% predicted to 2023 (Smithers). Digital Textile Printing, and by way of example; pigment printing, has a strong future and a positive environmental impact for our sector. Digital Textile Printing using the pigment ink set hardly consumes any water, discharges no toxic effluent and saves 80% of the electricity used when compared to analog technology, nor does it contribute significantly to air pollution. Throughout the Digital Textile Printing sector, sustainability is a key driver for change as inkjet solutions deliver a new generation of textile manufacturing equipment that is capable of printing on demand, sustainably, with the necessary quality,

and at great speed when necessary. The observer may well ask, how has this been achieved? The answer lies in examining the role of Digital Textile Printing and the environmental savings that it has created. First, Digital Textile Printing is described as a substantially waterless process. In conventional analog screen printing, the colors that are to be printed are made up in bulk, often in a large-scale computercontrolled color ink kitchen. The volumes of color paste (mixed using water) required for screen printing are so much greater than for digital. An average screen print will consume over 40cc of ink per square meter, while an average digital printer will only consume 8cc per square meter. A further advantage is that there is no waste ink in the digital printing process, because the ink used is only that which is dispensed from the printhead and then jetted to the fabric being printed, while with screen printing, particularly on short runs, the ink usage is naturally greater, and waste is generated from screen wash offs and redundant color. Utilizing the Digital Textile Print process also amounts to a huge 90%+ savings in water usage. It follows from this that because there is no ink waste during the digital process, there is no need for any discharge of textile effluent. This is in stark contrast to screen printing, Continue on page 66

Image courtesy of Texintel and Debbie Mckeegan

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Image courtesy of Texintel and Mimaki

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ASSOCIATION INSIGHTS

SGIA: Navigating the Printing Evolution

As the printing industry evolves, PSPs are looking for their next revenue streams and opportunities for growth. SGIA is here to help navigate the sea change. Article by Ford Bowers

he printing industry is characterized by dynamism. People in the industry — whether they’re print service providers (PSPs), suppliers or OEMs — have begun to truly embrace change. As technology has changed, PSPs have innovated, and printing has evolved. The Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (SGIA) has evolved along

Ford Bowers Ford Bowers is President & CEO at Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (SGIA)

with the industry — from our first days as a group for screen printers to our “under-one-roof” approach of today. A lot has changed, especially in the last two years, and it has set the stage for what’s to come.

Change is Good Convergence — the blurring of technological boundaries between once distinct industry segments — and diversification — the way PSPs are embracing technologies and markets outside their traditional offerings — have propelled the changes we’ve seen in the association and in our trade show, now known as PRINTING United. PRINTING United is the collaboration of two forward-

looking companies, SGIA and NAPCO Media, which accepted the challenge to answer an industry need. Our debut event in October featured a sold-out show floor with more than 675 exhibitors, over 100 educational sessions and a full offering of networking events. Built on the platform of the “old” SGIA Expo, PRINTING United went further, opening up new pathways to opportunity by representing the entire printing marketplace — from apparel decorating and graphics production, to commercial printing and packaging printing. The partnerships we formed as we produced the show are a testament to that inclusivity; groups like the Inplant Printing & Mailing Association

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ASSOCIATION INSIGHTS (IPMA), the Association of Independent Corrugated Convertors (AICC) and DSCOOP saw the value in and supported PRINTING United. With our subsequent acquisition of NAPCO this summer, SGIA capitalized on the two organizations’ unique strengths, expanding our combined capabilities geometrically, and reaching outside of SGIA’s traditional community to embrace the industry as a whole.

Knowledge is Power Convergence is a powerful phenomenon, but if you’re a PSP trying to navigate the sea of change, it can also be overwhelming. That’s why SGIA offers impactful yearround resources, including education, training, research, networking and technical certifications. Because understanding the context in which a business operates is so important, we’ve reinvigorated our industry research program, creating respondent panels and increasing participation. Combining these efforts with those of NAPCO Media Research, we expect robust offerings in the coming months. This December, we’re collaborating with AATCC on the Digital Textile Printing Conference 4.0. This two-day event, Dec. 11-12 in Durham, N.C., brings together some of the industry’s best-known and most-respected experts presenting key trends and technological developments that are accelerating the digitally printed textile market. SGIA has taken a leadership role in the color management arena, convening the Digital Specifications Working Group to address the lack of common color targets in digital printing. It’s a star-studded group, including representatives from companies including WestRock, Fujifilm and Nazdar, and the Sonoco Institute at Clemson University is

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providing measurement data. The group’s first task is establishing color targets for dye sublimation printing. On a more granular level, SGIA’s Color Management Boot Camps and Certified Color Professional Certifications continue to provide PSPs with critical know-how, and the credentials to prove it. There will be more than 15 boot camps — presented by partners and SGIA — in 2020. Getting color right is key to reducing waste and increasing customer satisfaction, and I’m proud

SGIA invests in strengthening communities where PSPs and suppliers and manufacturers can meet and learn from each other — online and in person. of the role we’re taking in helping the industry improve. SGIA also offers credentials for installers — and that’s another program we’re improving for 2020. Come the beginning of the year, installers will be able to earn badges in Commercial Vehicle/ Fleet, Architectural Level 1 and Color Change. (Installers who are currently PDAA Master Certified will be awarded the Commercial Vehicle/ Fleet badge and the Architecture Level 1 badge.)

Connections are Key Technology is exciting, but what really makes printing so dynamic are the people in the industry. SGIA invests in strengthening communities where PSPs and suppliers and manufacturers can meet and learn from each other — online and in person. Events like the THREADX conference for apparel decorators, Digital Textile Printing Conference and PRINTING United are just a few examples of the many offerings we have, and we’re adding more. In April, we’re introducing the Wide-Format Summit, an invitationonly conference in Austin, Texas. It’s designed for senior managers and executives who want to understand how current and future printing and finishing technologies, substrate options and data management solutions will impact their businesses. The summit, which will take place alongside NAPCO’s eighth annual Inkjet Summit, will provide strategic-level insights into what printing industry leaders must do to grow, improve and optimize their businesses. We’re also proud to be working on Partners in Printing with Empire Screen Printing of La Crosse, Wisc. Empire creates printed products for industries including appliances, automotive, aircraft, electronics, food and beverage, government, sporting goods and retail. This unique biennial event combines professional education with a vendor fair and networking. As 2020 rolls on, SGIA will continue to offer programs that bolster your skills, expand your thinking and introduce you to your peers as we continue to change to better meet your needs. Learn more about how you can take full advantage of all SGIA offers at SGIA.org. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091909 ■

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RESEARCH & WHITE PAPERS

5 Ways Production Inkjet Improves Direct Mail Learn about the latest direct mail personalization trends that can be effectively managed with production inkjet. An Inkjet Insight white paper for Inkjet Direct Mail Professionals commissioned by HP. Find here: https://bit.ly/2VUoQUv

Seizing Business Opportunities with Large Format Printing According to IT Strategies, the large format digital printing market is growing annually between 3% and 6%. This means more business opportunities emerge every year for printing companies looking to add easy-to-use, high-performance large format printing services. Interested in learning where to look and how to take advantage of this growth opportunity? Find here: https://bit.ly/2pp5tXz

Experience, Relationships and Inkjet in the Commercial Printing Marketplace Commercial print organizations face unique challenges when evaluating investment in digital printing technologies. This white paper discusses trends in the commercial printing marketplace including offset and digital volume, drivers of efficiency and added value and the positioning of production inkjet to bridge the gap between the two. Find here: https://bit.ly/2IZM6eN

Printing News is your premier opportunity to connect with your audience, generate leads and engage customers.

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TEXTILES & APPAREL Continued from page 57

fragrances into fabrics, to be released upon friction and absorbed into the skin. What’s special about Acabada’s use of microencapsulation is the use of CBD. A handful of studies have begun looking into the benefits of CBD, and over the next few years we will see more science and proof of the benefits of CBD. WTT: What fabrics are being used? Natural fibers, polyester, blends? SB: We are using a super soft, highperformance blend of recycled poly (85%) and elastane (15%). WTT: Where are your products manufactured? SB: Acabada utilizes a high-tech and fully sustainable manufacturing partner in Portugal—one of the only manufacturers in the world who has experience with microencapsulation—to oversee the production process. By the way, Acabada incorporates CBD in the name, but it also means “finished” in Portuguese, a nod to our manufacturing partner. WTT: At what point is the microencapsulation applied/ embedded? I ask this question because of the growing use of digital printing (including heat-transfer sublimation) that would likely apply too much pressure and/or heat to pretreated fabric, breaking the microcapsules. I’m also curious about the effect of other pre-/post-treatment processes on the microcapsules. SB: The CBD filled microcapsules are added as a finish to the fabric, prior to the garment manufacturing process. Based on the current technology, once the microencapsulation has been infused into the fabric, no other treatments (printing or additional chemicals) can be added. As we continue to move forward, we anticipate being able to engineer ways to incorporate some of these treatments in the near future.

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We are already working closely with the microencapsulation supplier on different ways to apply to the fabric that will extend the lifespan of the CBD, beyond current levels.

WTT: Explain your recycling program and your overall approach to helping the textile industry (and/ or your company) improve its sustainability. SB: As customers approach 40 wears and washes, they can choose to sustainably recycle their CBDinfused garments through Acabada’s upcycling program, where the recycled, synthetic fabrics will be repurposed where needed as commercial materials. With this program customers will also receive a 30% exclusive discount on their next Acabada ProActiveWear purchase. WTT: Will you be adding menswear to your line? SB: We plan to expand Acabada into additional categories of CBD infused products including menswear, accessories and more in future drops. WTT: Beyond that, can you tell me about any other future strategies and your vision of the future of the industry, especially as it relates to the various digital technologies now being incorporated? SB: As a new-to-market business, we look to technology as an integral part of our sales, marketing, manufacturing, and management processes. As Acabada grows, our plans include embracing the most up-to-date technological innovations available. We will always be looking for ways to use the latest technologies to keep Acabada ahead of the curve. We are already working closely with the microencapsulation supplier on different ways to apply to the fabric that will extend the lifespan of the CBD, beyond current levels. We’re also in the process of developing new blended combinations of active ingredients that can be added to the CBD in order to provide additional benefits to the wearer. Stay tuned in 2020 for more specifics on this. Find article here PrintingNews.com/21091660 ■

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TEXTILES & APPAREL Continued from page 59

where surplus color and screen washoff product have to be discharged to waste, requiring, at the very least, an effluent treatment plant to rectify the chemical imbalance before it reaches the water table. Unfortunately, in many countries, such textile effluent is discharged directly into rivers and streams, causing irremediable downstream pollution. The Chinese textile industry alone discharges over 2.5 billion tons of wastewater every year. Moving on to energy savings, particularly electricity, digital printing consumes a fraction of the electricity

Image courtesy of Texintel and Debbie Mckeegan

consumed by screen printing. The reason for this is simply in the methods used to apply and dry the inks. On a digital printer, moving parts are at a minimum, and because it isn’t a contact printing system, and because the water volumes for drying are so minimal, the electric requirement is very low. This is in contrast to rotary screen printing, where, because it is drying a much greater water volume and has geared drives at every color station combined with full-width fabric transport, analog printing uses up to four times as much electricity as a digital textile printer. 66

Finally, turning to air pollution, where again, because of the water volumes being used and the small amount of residual liquid on the surface of the fabric that has to be dried, the fabric dryer for digital print emits ultra-low volumes of air pollutants through the drying system’s exhaust fans. This is in stark contrast to screen printing, where, again because of the amount of surface liquid involved, there are large volumes of noxious substances emitted during drying and thermo fixation. Beyond the technical considerations and savings outlined above, Digital Textile Printing delivers an elegant solution to sustainable supply by facilitating on-demandproduction in providing an elegant, cost-effective solution to overstocks and landfill issues. Relying on its speed to market and its ease of file handling and workflow, Digital Textile Printing provides a true on-demand business model, where stock is produced not on speculation but against real demand. This system doesn’t produce closeouts or fire sales to clear unwanted stock, but services the actual needs of the market as they arise, with the result that its products are manufactured to intelligent stock forecasts, produced sustainably, and brands and retailers don’t end up placing excess inventory in landfills. Textile re-equipment planners all over the world are looking to Digital Textile Printing to provide solutions not only to address speed-to-market, customization and on-demand questions, but also to take advantage of the benefits of an eco-friendly, sustainable technology that makes it a winning proposition in today’s world market of millennials and Gen Zers, who are often much more environmentally conscious than their predecessor generations.

In summary: Much is made of the waste created in the fashion Industry and the incredible volumes of unwanted clothing sent to landfills. But to really appreciate where the industry must change, we have to look at the cycle of origination. If we are to become sustainable in our manufacturing processes, we have to design products differently from the very beginning and adopt digital technologies throughout the manufacturing and distribution process. Turning around an Industry of this magnitude cannot be done overnight. As an industry, we do not have the technologies in place to recycle the volumes of fabrics needed to use truly sustainable textiles. We must create new processes and technologies that facilitate recycling, clean manufacturing, and the adoption of renewable energies; and importantly, we must seek to educate the entire supply chain and the next generation in the application of sustainable practices. Circular design is a must for the well being of the planet, our environment and the future of the textiles industry. Never before has transparency been more necessary in the supply chain. We must move forward to redefine the journey of the products we create if we are to build successful businesses for the future. As the super brands increasingly switch over to adopt carbon neutral supply chains, those that do not adopt sustainable practices and invest in digital technologies will lose market share. This is what has happened in just about every other industry that has undergone, or is undergoing, an analog-todigital transformation, and the textiles industry will be no different. Find article here PrintingNews. com/21091663 ■

WhatTheyThink - Wide-Format&Signage November 2019

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INSIGHT YOU NEED. ANALYSIS YOU TRUST.

Your comprehensive source for emerging trends in our evolving industry.

08 The New Reality: VR, QR, AR, and Interactive Print Merge the Digital and the Physical

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